US markets mostly firmer as voters prepared to head to the polling booths for the mid-term elections although the Technology sector was a notable laggard - Dow up +167-points or +0.66% Berkshire Hathaway boosted the broader Financials sector (up +1.6%), with the Class B shares climbing +4.6% after Omaha, Nebraska, conglomerate bought nearly US$1B of its own shares in August, the company disclosed in a securities filing on Monday (5 November) after releasing its third-quarter earnings on Saturday (3 November). Chevron Corporation rallied +3.5% to lead the Energy sector higher after Credit Suisse upgraded the oil major to 'Outperform', citing the company has compelling free cash flow and valuation. Lowe’s Companies rose 0.3% after the company said it would close 20 under performing stored in the US. and 31 stores in Canada as part of a strategic reassessment The broader S&P500 rose +0.52%. However, the technology-centric NASDAQ shed -0.36%, with Apple Inc (down -2.84%) and Amazon Inc (-2.26%) both falling over >2%. Amazon’s stock pulled back after President Trump said the administration was looking into antitrust violations committed by the e-commerce giant. In the mid-term elections, Democrats are expected to regain control of the House while Republicans hold on to a slim majority in the Senate.
