Boeing workers vote to end strike; markets brace for US election – business live | Business

European stock markets have opened cautiously, with investors eying events in the US.

The UK’s FTSE 100 share index is down 4 points in early trading, at 8179 points. Defensive stocks are in demand, with Severn Trent (+2.4%) and United Utilities (+2.5%) among the top Footsie risers.

At the other end of the table, Schroders are down 11% after reporting that its client funds saw a net outflow of £2.3bn in July-September. Schroders says it was hit by “continued market volatility in China” in the last quarter.

France’s CAC and Germany’s DAX indices rose 0.1% at the open, while Spain’s IBEX dipped by 0.2%.

Vodafone and Three have welcomed the CMA’s new Remedies Working Paper on their merger.

In a statement, the two (soon to become one?) mobile operators say they believe the Paper “provides a path to final clearance”.

They say:

The Parties welcome the CMA’s recognition that the significant improvements in network quality delivered by their Joint Network Plan will “boost competition between mobile network operators in the long term and benefit millions of people who rely on mobile services.”

The merger is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform the UK’s digital infrastructure – which lags significantly behind its European peers – and for more than 50 million UK customers to benefit from a vastly better mobile experience.

Back in the UK, the £15bn merger between Vodafone and Hutchison’s Three UK has moved closer to being cleared.

The UK’s competition authority has declared today that the merger could proceed “if appropriate remedies are implemented,” including upgrading the merged company’s network to speed up the roll-out of 5G services.

The Competition and Markets Authority says:

The CMA has today set out a Remedies Working Paper to seek views on the effectiveness of a proposed remedy package.

It provisionally finds that a legally binding commitment to undertake the network integration and investment programme proposed by Vodafone and Three would significantly improve the quality of the merged company’s mobile network, boosting competition between mobile network operators in the long term and benefiting millions of people who rely on mobile services.

Previously, the CMA had sounded more concerned about the deal – saying it could hurt competition and push up bills.

Back in July, Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle told the Guardian that the Labour government will fail to achieve its promise of nationwide access to 5G if the deal was blocked.

The first results in the US presidential race are in, and it’s a tie!

Fittingly (given the closeness of the polls) Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have won three votes each in Dixville Notch, a tiny New Hampshire town which traditionally kicks off voting on election day.

According to CNN, four Republicans and two undeclared voters participated in the poll – in which all eligible voters gather at the now-dormant Balsams Hotel in Dixville Notch to cast their secret ballots once polls open at midnight.

With Americans heading to the polls today, the financial markets are in a state of high excitement over the race to the White House.

Market volatility has been picking up in recent days, as investors have tried to assess the likely winner of today’s presidential election, and how congressional elections may play out too.

Yesterday, the US dollar dipped to a two-week low, after a poll showed Kamala Harris with a surprise three-point lead over Donald Trump in Iowa. The greenback is flat this morning.

Stocks fell on Wall Street last night too, with the Dow Jones industrial average losing 257 points or 0.6% to 41,794 points.

As the polls have been so tight, traders are concerned we will not know the result for several days or even longer.

Erik Knutzen and Jeff Blazek, co-CIOs of multi-asset strategies at Neuberger Berman, told clients that the uncertainty could last days, or even weeks:

Uncertainty around control of Congress, particularly the House, could also extend longer than uncertainty over who is in the White House. And a contested result could add still more days or weeks of market volatility.

We have been anticipating a pick-up in volatility as the election nears, and this week is likely to see a peak in that volatility, lasting until we have an unambiguous outcome. This is a key reason why we have been counselling against taking substantial active positions—particularly active positions tilted to one or other election result.

The exception would be in assets that can help to diversify portfolios and dampen their volatility, such as gold and other commodities.

Anxiety over the election has already contributed to US government bonds suffering their worst month in two years in October.

Betting markets have narrowed significantly on the eve of Tuesday’s presidential election, eroding Trump’s lead over Harris as Americans cast their votes.

Last night, Trump and Harris have held their final election rallies.

Harris ended with a message of unity, telling supporters in Philadelphia that her campaign was ending “with energy, with joy,” adding:

“Instead of stewing on an enemies list I will work on my to-do list.”

Trump has just wrapped up in Michigan, where he insulted President Joe Biden, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, representative Adam Schiff, California governor Gavin Newsom and Harris, and also promised action on immigration, saying:

“The day I take office the migrant invasion ends.”

You can track all the action in our US election liveblog:

Boeing’s CEO Kelly Ortberg has said he was pleased the plane-maker’s union had ratified the latest pay deal.

In a message to staff, Ortberg said:

“While the past few months have been difficult for all of us, we are all part of the same team.

There is much work ahead to return to the excellence that made Boeing an iconic company.”

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.

Boeing’s management, and airline operators across the world, will be letting out a large sign of relief today, after its factory workers agreed to end their strike after 53 days.

West Coast factory workers have accepted a pay deal, ending the walkout that began in mid-September and halted much of the company’s jet production.

Boeing’s union said members voted 59% in favor of the new contract, which offers a 43.65% compounded wage increase over four years – 13%, 9%, 9%, and 7%.

Jon Holden, the union’s lead negotiator, told members:

“This is a victory. We can hold our heads high.

Now it’s our job to get back to work.”

Holden has also said that the new contract can “create a new foundation”, to help Boeing return to building the highest quality and safest airplanes in the world.

He says:

“Working people know what it’s like when a company overreaches and takes away more than is fair. Through this strike and the resulting victory, frontline workers at Boeing have done their part to begin rebalancing the scales in favor of the middle class – and in doing so, we hope to inspire other workers in our industry and beyond to continue standing up for justice at work.

Through this victory and the strike that made it possible, IAM members have taken a stand for respect and fair wages in the workplace. Our members perform high quality and flight critical work for the airplanes we build and deserve a return on their labor investment that provides for the quality of life worthy of that labor.

The breakthrough eases the pressure on new Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg after two previous offers were voted down in recent weeks.

Airlines will also be relieved, after being hit by delays to Boeing’s shipments.

Yesterday, Ryanair said continued problems at Boeing meant it wouldcut its growth plans for next year.

The agenda

• 9am GMT: UK new car sales for October

• 9.30am GMT: UK Service sector PMI

• 10am GMT: Treasury committee hearing with Richard Hughes, chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility, on its economic and fiscal forecast.

• 2pm GMT: Treasury committee hearing with independent economists about the budget