US stock futures and dollar rise on early election results

U.S. stock futures and the dollar rose in Asia on Wednesday, as early returns from the presidential election suggested the contest was too close to call, leaving investors looking for shadows.

According to Edison Research, Republican Donald Trump won eight states and Democrat Kamala Harris won three, including Washington, D.C., although important battleground states were unlikely to be called for hours, if not days.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.6% in volatile trading, while Nasdaq futures rose 0.3%. EUROSTOXX 50 futures rose 0.2%, DAX futures 0.4%, and FTSE futures 0.3%.

The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific equities outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS), which opens in a separate tab, changed little. Japan's Nikkei (.N225), opens new tab climbed 1.2% as the yen fell, matching Wall Street's overnight rally.

In currency markets, the dollar index rose by 0.8% to 104.19. The euro fell 0.8% to $1.0834, after reaching a one-month high of $1.0937 overnight.

The dollar rose 0.8% to 152.86 yen, moving further away from its low of 151.34.

The dollar gained 0.5% against the offshore yuan, reaching 7.1375 yuan. China is perceived as being on the front lines of tariff risk, and its currency, in particular, is trading on edge, with implied volatility against the dollar hovering at record highs.

A strengthening dollar paired with increased bond yields left gold prices little changed at $2,744 per ounce, down from a previous record high of 2,790.15.