US open: Markets buoyed on a likely Hillary Clinton presidency

US markets were buoyed on Monday by new that Hillary Clinton was likely to be heading to the White House on 8 November after the FBI cleared the Democratic candidate over use of her emails on a private server.

James Comey, the director of the FBI, told Congress that the second probe into Clinton’s emails reaffirmed his July verdict of no evidence of criminal wrongdoing.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 1.48% to 18,152.75 points, the S&P 500 climbed 1.55% to 2,117.48 points and the Nasdaq soared 1.71% to 5,132.53 points at 1449 GMT.

Gold Comex retreated 1.34% to $1,287.00 per ounce at 1433 GMT, as news of Clinton’s email exoneration meant investors were no longer heading for salvation in the yellow metal.

Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said the Dow Jones displayed a clear preference for president, as expected, with the index surging 250 points following Clinton’s email verdict.

“That takes the Dow back to 18,150 after abandoning that level last Tuesday in the aftermath of the FBI controversially re-opening the Clinton email case. Joining the Dow was the dollar, which only improved on its earlier gains this afternoon, against the pound the greenback is up 1%, while against the euro it has risen 0.9%.

“So, Monday has proceeded in a way eerily similar to the scenes before the Brexit back in June. In the run-up to the referendum the markets saw a last minute surge as investors prepared for Britain to remain in the EU, only to suffer a shock when the votes were counted. The market has a bit more time to steady itself before the results of the election are announced, as the US electorate head to the polls tomorrow it will be interesting to see whether investors opt for continued Clinton confidence, sensible stability, or a sharp turn Trump-wards.”

Meanwhile, oil rebounded on the news that the secretary general of OPEC said the cartel was committed to a deal to cut production, but doubts persist over the feasibility of the plan.

An earthquake also hit Oklahoma on Sunday near the country's biggest crude-storage base.

Brent crude rose 0.67% to $45.89 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate crept up 0.92% to $44.48 at 1441 GMT.

In corporate news, shares in Sotheby's increased 7.32% as the auctioneer reported a wider-than-expected $545m loss, or 99 cents a share, in the third quarter, compared to $17.9m, or 26 cents, last year. Revenue fell 34% to $91.5m, but ahead of the forecast consensus of $75.8m.

Lending Club’s shares jumped 18.71% as the peer-to-peer lending company's third quarter results beat expectations as revenue fell 1.48% to 114.56m, compared to last year and ahead of expectations of $103.65m.

Shares in Dean Foods rose 1.19% as the milk producer also beat third quarter expectations, with earnings down 25% to $15m, or 16 cents a share, and adjusted earnings was 37 cents, above the forecast consensus of 36 cents. Revenue slipped to $1.96bn from $2.03bn.