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Dollar steady, markets bet on Clinton win in looming U.S. presidential vote

The dollar steadied in Asia on Tuesday, keeping previous session gains as markets wagered on a victory for Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential election after the FBI cleared her of any wrongdoing in its latest probe of her use of a private email server.

The dollar index .DXY, which tracks the U.S. currency against a basket of six major currencies, stood at 97.753, well above Friday's low of 96.894, its lowest since Oct. 10.

China’s Exports Drop for a Seventh Month on Tepid Global Demand

China’s exports fell for a seventh month, leaving policy makers reliant on domestic growth engines to hit their economic expansion goals.

- Overseas shipments dropped 7.3 percent from a year earlier in October in dollar terms

- Imports slipped 1.4 percent

- Trade surplus widened to $49.1 billion

"External demand remains sluggish across the board," said Julia Wang, an economist at HSBC Holdings Plc in Hong Kong. "On the import side, commodities demand is still holding up well, suggesting that domestic infrastructure investment likely remains strong."

"With both global and domestic growth unlikely to accelerate much further, the medium-term outlook for Chinese trade remains challenging," said Julian Evans-Pritchard, an economist at Capital Economics in Singapore. "The ongoing cyclical rebound in China’s economy should support imports for another quarter or two but is unlikely to last."

Oil prices steady ahead of U.S. election, weak China data weighs

Oil prices were stable on Tuesday as financial investors and traders were cautiously positioning themselves for a win by Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential elections.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $44.97 at 0610 GMT, virtually flat from their previous settlement. The contract gained nearly 1.9 percent the previous session.

International Brent crude prices were up 8 cents at $46.23 per barrel.

Reference: Bloomberg,Reuters