US benchmarks rise over 1% at open as US politics takes centre stage

9.45am: Wall Street benchmarks surge at open US stocks surged at the open in New York for the mid-week session, with all three benchmarks gaining over 1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged over 333 to 28,106 having closed Tuesday over 375 points lower. The S&P 500 added 41 points at 3,401. The Nasdaq index advanced over 145 at 11,300 as US politics continues to take centre stage. Yesterday, President Trump called for talks on a stimulus package to help the economy amid the coronavirus crisis to be halted until after the November 3 US election, sending stocks spiraling. But hours later, he appeared to row back on the move as he called for aid to airlines and other fiscal measures. The President also later tweeted that he would be willing to pass several independent stimulus measures. Also in investor sights today, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will make an early afternoon speech, while the US will get the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting. Connor Campbell, analyst at Spreadex said the Dow Jones was "looking to bounce back" this afternoon "That might be because, regardless of who wins the election, some form of stimulus should ostensibly be on its way in November," he suggested. 7.30am: US stocks set for rebound US stocks are expected to rebound in early trade on Wednesday as initial dismay at President Trump’s decision to cancel fiscal stimulus negotiations with US lawmakers was replaced by optimism about an aid package after the elections. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 150 points higher, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.4% each. On Tuesday, the Dow tumbled 365 points, while the S&P 500 fell 1.4% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 1.6% after Trump announced he would pause stimulus package talks. Trump broke off stimulus talks with Democrats in a tweet, saying that negotiations will stop until after the November 3 election, when he promised a major stimulus bill if he wins. However, in a later tweet, Trump said he would consider limited stimulus measures. The President’s tweets came shortly after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell reiterated warnings about the economic recovery, saying that the US economy could slip into a downward spiral if the coronavirus is not controlled and growth sustained. “The reason for US stock futures trading higher is because investors know that whoever will win the US presidential election, another stimulus package is more likely to happen,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at AvaTrade. A poll on Monday showed Democrat Joe Biden with his widest lead over incumbent Trump in a month, as a majority of Americans said Trump could have avoided the coronavirus infection which hospitalised him at the weekend. Six things to watch on Wednesday: Minutes from the Fed’s September meeting will be published at 1pm on Wednesday. A debate between Vice President Mike Pence and the Democratic challenger nominee, Sen. Kamala Harris of California, is due later on Wednesday. President Trump has said Congress should quickly extend $25 billion in new payroll assistance to US. passenger airlines furloughing thousands of workers as air travel remains down sharply amid the coronavirus pandemic. The US Supreme Court is set to consider whether to protect Alphabet Inc’s Google from a long-running lawsuit by Oracle Corp accusing it of infringing Oracle copyrights to build the Android operating system that runs most of the world’s smartphones. Oil and gas workers withdrew en masse from offshore production facilities as Hurricane Delta grew into a powerful storm over the Caribbean on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. US chipmaker Broadcom will scrap its exclusivity deals with TV and modem makers in a deal with EU antitrust regulators aimed at ending a year-long investigation without a finding of wrongdoing, the European Commission said on Wednesday.