Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Tuesday he was “fully confident” the country would hit its economic goals this year, lauding recent stimulus measures and suggesting there was still room for more.China’s leaders have set an annual growth target of around five percent, but in the third quarter the country saw its slowest expansion in a year and a half as its post-pandemic recovery remained stubbornly uneven.The government has announced a raft of measures aimed at boosting activity, including rate cuts and the easing of some home purchasing restrictions, but analysts have criticised the lack of detail so far.  Observers hope a specific figure for the stimulus could emerge from this week’s meeting of the Standing Committee of National People’s Congress, the top body of China’s rubber stamp parliament. “We are fully confident in the realisation of this year’s goals and the development of China’s economy in the future,” Li said Tuesday at the opening ceremony of a major international trade show in Shanghai.Referring to the recent package of measures, Li, who has official responsibility for economic policy, said they had been “well-received”.”China’s major economic indicators have rebounded across the board, market confidence has increased significantly, social expectations have improved significantly, and there have been many positive changes in economic operation,” he said. An initial market rally when the measures were announced has since fizzled out, with investors put out by the lack of detail.But there have been glimmers of hope for the economy recently, including China’s manufacturing output expanding for the first time in six months in October.On Tuesday Li suggested that officials still had room to manouevre when it came to further measures. “In the face of downward economic pressure, we have the requirements for increasing counter-cyclical adjustments,” he said. “There is a relatively large space for financial and monetary policies, and the policy tools are even more abundant,” he added.

Asian markets fluctuated Tuesday as traders jockeyed for position a day before results from the US presidential election rolled in, with opinion polls showing the vote on a knife-edge as the two candidates wrapped up their campaigns.Uncertainty about the outcome and worries that the winner might not be known for days has led to warnings that investors could be in for a period of volatility.Eyes will also be on the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Thursday, with expectations for another cut, while the post-meeting statement from bank boss Jerome Powell will be pored over for an idea about its plans for 2025.A win for Republican Donald Trump is expected to boost the dollar, restoke inflation and send Treasury yields higher owing to his pledges to slash taxes and impose tariffs on imports.But analysts see less upheaval from a win by Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.”Some view a second Trump term as a potential ticket to higher deficits and a dash of inflation, courtesy of his tax-and-tariff playbook,” said Stephen Innes at STI Asset Management.”A Trump victory with a Republican Congress would likely mean a green light for these pro-growth, deficit-stirring policies.”With Harris and a divided Congress, radical Democratic policies would face a wall, keeping fiscal volatility in check compared to Trump’s economic flamethrower.”He added that a Trump win and Republican sweep of both houses of Congress could cause headaches for Powell as he continues his battle to bring inflation to heel.National Australia Bank’s head of market economics, Tapas Strickland, said that after Thursday’s decision: “Harder discussions come in December and beyond, especially on the pace of potential cuts, where rates are likely to go, and any policy impacts by the next president and Congress.”Wall Street’s three main indexes ended in the red, and Asian traders battled to build on their broadly positive Monday performance, with markets swinging in and out of positive territory.Hong Kong and Shanghai rose as traders await the end of a government meeting this week to hammer out an economic stimulus.Officials are expected to give the go-ahead to about $140 billion in extra budget spending, mostly for indebted local governments, and a similar one-off payment for banks.Tokyo rallied more than one percent as investors returned from an extended weekend, while Wellington, Taipei, Jakarta and Manila also advanced. Sydney, Singapore and Seoul edged down.Oil prices inched down after surging almost three percent Monday after top producers agreed to extend output cuts through to the end of December and on worries about the Middle East crisis.- Key figures around 0230 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.1 percent at 38,474.66 (break)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 20,636.74Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,322.02Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0875 from $1.0878 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2957 from $1.2954Dollar/yen: UP at 152.33 yen from 152.17 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.96 from 83.94 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $71.42 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $75.02 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,184.24 (close)

European and US stock markets dipped while the dollar slid Monday as investors steel themselves for a coin-toss US presidential election, an interest rate decision and expected Chinese stimulus measures.Oil prices rallied more than two percent after eight members of the OPEC+ group of producers said Sunday they would extend supply cuts until the end of next month.They had been delaying output hikes on worries about slowing demand in China and the United States.While Asian markets gained, tracking a positive lead from Wall Street ahead of the weekend, European markets were mostly lower and US markets wobbled.”Traders are gearing up for perhaps the most important week of the year,” said Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets. Investors are looking for any hint of an advantage between the US presidential candidates as Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and her Republican rival, ex-president Donald Trump, remain neck and neck in opinion polls ahead of Tuesday’s poll.The dollar retreated against its main rivals Monday as a fresh survey in Iowa — which Trump won in 2016 and 2020 — showed Harris leading over the weekend.A victory for Trump is seen as being positive for the dollar and pushing up Treasury yields owing to his pledges to cut taxes and impose hefty tariffs on imports.Elections for the Senate and House of Representatives are also being closely watched amid speculation the Republicans could take control of both.”If the Republicans sweep all three, that will open the door to significant fiscal changes, which is negative for bondholders and could spell higher yields until the dust settles,” said Peter Esho, founder of Esho Capital.The election comes before the Federal Reserve is due to make its latest policy decision this week, with investors expecting a 25-basis-point reduction after a bumper 50-point cut at its last gathering.With the candidates running neck-in-neck, little can be said with certainty.The vote is of particular interest to China, where officials in Beijing are meeting this week to hammer out an economic stimulus.Economists expect lawmakers to approve around one trillion yuan ($140 billion) in extra budget spending, mostly for indebted local governments, and a one-off one-trillion yuan payment for banks.Hong Kong made gains and Shanghai was up more than one percent at the close. Tokyo was shut for a holiday. In European trading, both Paris and Frankfurt ended the day lower but London bucked the trend to edge higher, with the Bank of England widely expected to cut its main interest rate on Thursday after inflation dropped below its target rate.Oil prices also firmed after Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned at the weekend that Israel and the United States “will definitely receive a tooth-breaking response” to Israeli attacks on October 26.That strike was in response to an October 1 barrage of about 200 missiles against its rival.- Key figures around 2020 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.3 percent at 5,712.69 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 18,179.98 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,184.24 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.5 percent at 7,371.71 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 19,147.85 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 20,567.52 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 1.2 percent at 3,310.21 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Closed for a holidayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.0878 from $1.0834 on FridayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2954 from $1.2924Dollar/yen: DOWN at 152.17 yen from 153.01 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.94 from 83.86 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 2.7 percent at $75.08 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 2.9 percent at $71.47 per barrelburs-jmb/bfm