Around 3:00 p.m. GMT, the Dow Jones index advanced by 0.18%, the Nasdaq, which is dominated by technology, fell by 0.25% and the S&P 500 gained 0.03%.

Friday, the indices had closed the session in the green after the employment figures but ended down on the week.

The Dow Jones index ended at 32,403.22 points (+1.26%), the Nasdaq at 10,475.25 points (+1.28%) and the S&P 500 at 3,770.55 points (+1.36%) .

"Tuesday's US election will partially divert the attention of investors who are focused on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy," acknowledged Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management.

These elections will determine the balance of power in Congress.

And, after a fierce campaign centered on inflation, Republicans are showing growing confidence in their chances of stripping Joe Biden of his majorities in Parliament.

"Tomorrow's election could see a shift in party control of one or both houses of Congress, which will likely impact future budget spending," Wells Fargo analysts said.

But "the consensus is to think that a government divided between the White House and Congress will lead to more political impasses and a slowdown in the programs of President Joe Biden", added Art Hogan.

Historically, Wall Street has shown a preference for a divided Congress and White House because it blocks the execution of laws that might be unfavorable to the market.

Inflation in sight

On the economic front, investors will mainly watch the CPI consumer price index on Thursday.

Analysts are still forecasting a monthly increase of 0.5% for October after +0.6% the month before.

Last week the indices ended with a weekly loss, shaken by the firm tone of the Fed and its new rate hike of 75 basis points.

Additionally, the jobs report for October showed mixed numbers with job creation slowing but still sustained at 261,000 while the jobless rate edged up to 3.7%, mostly on a decline. of participation in the labor market.

Apple lost 1.86% as the iPhone maker admitted on Sunday that its phone shipments to China will be weaker than expected as the holidays approach due to restrictions against Covid-19 in China. .

The Taiwanese group Foxconn, Apple's main subcontractor, has been facing an increase in Covid-19 cases since October at its huge site in Zhengzhou, the largest iPhone factory in the world.

The company did not specify the extent of the impact of the containment on its financial results.

It will publish its results for the third quarter on Thursday.

Meta (Facebook), which the Wall Street Journal says will lay off thousands of people, was hailed on Wall Street, gaining 3.65% to $94.

The title of Mark Zuckerberg's group was one of the biggest losers of the year in the S&P 500, dropping more than 70% of its value over twelve months.

Tesla lost 2.46% as its boss Elon Musk grapples with his overhaul of the Twitter social network, bought for $44 billion.

Netflix dropped 2.94% to $253 as competition intensifies between program providers who are raising their subscription prices one by one.

The online tour operator Expedia fell sharply (-4.80%) after a sharp rise on Friday following the publication of good results in the third quarter.

© 2022 AFP