US stocks open higher on Election Day

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Major indices in the US stock market opened higher on the Election Day on Tuesday.

The Dow Jones was up 1.9%, or 514 points, to 27,439 points, while the S&P 500 was up 1.6%, or 52 points, to 3,363 points around 10.00 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT).

The Nasdaq was up 1.3%, or 148 points, to trade at 11,105 points with tech shares of Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Netflix all rising by more than 1% with Twitter and Tesla soaring more than 5% and 3% respectively.

Precious metals were also on the rise, with gold climbing to 1,908 per ounce and silver above 24 per ounce, while US dollar index fell to around 93.5.

Investors believe that a strong relief package would come from the Congress and the White House after the election, which would provide stimulus for American economy and people.

The stimulus bill may come stronger, and higher than the $2.2 trillion bill proposed by Democrats but not supported by Republicans, if both the White House and Congress are controlled by the same party, according to many analysts.

As a downside risk, however, election results getting delayed or challenged may cause the stock market tumble due to high uncertainty.