A tight finish

Good morning. The US election heads for a tight finish. Traders are preparing for a long, volatile night. And even some high-income Americans can’t afford new cars anymore. Listen to the day’s top stories.

Polls suggest the presidential race is poised for a photo finish as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump blitz through swing states to make their final pitches. Harris is focusing on her economic platform and Trump is making claims about election fraud. Both teams are also preparing their governments-in-waiting. After the wildest campaign in decades, here’s a look at what happened so far in the run-up to Election Day.

Markets are braced. The dollar dropped the most in more than a month and some traders pared the so-called Trump trades as investors walked back wagers on the former president winning. Speculators are also liquidating their positions in US bonds. In stocks, traders are betting on volatility with the closely watched “fear index” signaling rising market stress.

Elon Musk’s business interests in China may give its President Xi Jinping a friend with influence if Trump is voted back in. Musk’s views on some of the most sensitive US-China issues closely align with those of Xi. We take a look at who Beijing wants to see next in the White House. On the campaign trail, Judy Dimon, the prominent political donor and wife of JPMorgan’s top executive, canvassed voters in Michigan in support of Harris. And Warren Buffett’s hometown is in the presidential spotlight as its single electoral vote could decide the race.

Speaking of Buffett, he topped up the cash pile at his Berkshire Hathaway investment vehicle to a record $325.2 billion in the third quarter. His conglomerate cut its stake in Apple again, this time by about 25%. But even with the hoard of cash, the firm’s operating earnings missed estimates.
In the Middle East, Iran is planning a counterattack on Israel involving more powerful warheads and other weapons, the Wall Street Journal reported. Tehran told allies an attack would come after the US vote but before January’s inauguration. Iran’s Supreme Leader also escalated his rhetoric, warning of a “crushing response” to the country’s enemies. Meanwhile, Benjamin Netanyahu’s office is accused of leaking classified documents to thwart a Gaza cease-fire.

Car buyers across America—even those with comfortable incomes—are dropping out of the new-car market as prices soar.

Wall Street traders are gearing up for all-nighters on Election Day, with teams in Europe and Asia enlisted to help. “November 5 is going to be a blindfolded mud-wrestle in a minefield,” Calvin Yeoh at Blue Edge Advisors said.

The Federal Reserve needs a steadier hand on the policy wheel and abandon the “only game in town” mindset, Mohamed El-Erian writes. The outlook for the US economy from here will depend much more on what happens elsewhere in the policy world post-election.

Harris debuted on NBC’s Saturday Night Live as a pep-talking mirror image of Maya Rudolph, the actress who portrays her. They traded lines in a riff that rhymed with the VP’s name. “Now Kamala, take my palm-ala. The American people want to stop the chaos,” Rudolph began. “And end the dram-ala,” Harris said.

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