Shares fluctuate before US vote

Most European stocks advanced as Americans prepared to go to the polls today to elect their president.

Asian shares and US index futures fluctuated between gains and losses.

ARM Holdings increased 3.2 per cent as Apple was said to consider ways to replace Intel processors in its personal computers.

Adecco climbed 2.8 per cent as the world's biggest supplier of temporary workers reported earnings that exceeded estimates.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.2 per cent to 273.73 at 8.16am in London, as two shares rose for each one that declined.

The gauge has surged 17 per cent from its low on June 4th, boosted by stimulus announcements from the European Central Bank and US Federal Reserve as well as better-than-forecast economic data.

"With the American election looking to be as tight as that of former President George W Bush's first-term win to the White House, many investor's are holding back and waiting for clarity on the political scene before committing," said Zahid Mahmood, a trader at Capital Spreads in London. "There also isn't a shortage of other economic and political data that will also add to the mix this week, which include interest-rate decisions from the BOE and ECB and the major power transition happening in China."

Mr Obama led Mr Romney by 48 per cent to 45 per cent in a national poll conducted by the Pew Research Center released on Sunday.  The survey, conducted among 2,709 likely voters late last week, has a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points.

Bloomberg