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| - Stock markets failed to mount a rebound Tuesday, a day after sharp drops on fears that a coronavirus resurgence will force fresh economically painful containment measures. Traders have meanwhile given up almost any hope for a new US stimulus package being passed before next Tuesday's election, with Democrats and Republicans blaming each other, though there are still expectations a new deal will be agreed afterwards. The prospects of US lawmakers approving another round of stimulus has kept stock markets buoyant for weeks. On Wall Street, the Dow wobbled around at the open, a day after it suffered its worst session since early September, dropping more than two percent. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite posted modest gains in initial trading. European stocks slipped but nowhere like the hefty losses on Monday. In afternoon trading, London was down 0.3 percent, while Frankfurt shed 0.4 percent and Paris lost 1.1 percent. Asia's leading indices closed mixed. Oil prices recovered slightly after steep falls Monday, while the dollar dropped versus its main rivals. The need for a big-spending rescue for hard-hit Americans is being highlighted by a big jump in new infections across the country that observers fear will deal a blow to an already shaky economic recovery. Data this week is expected to show record US growth in the third quarter thanks to a multi-trillion-dollar stimulus agreed earlier this year alongside huge Federal Reserve support. However, that follows a record contraction in the second quarter, and economists have tipped the economy to shrink for the year overall. "The second and third wave spread of Covid-19 is possibly triggering a point of no return for some industries as the economic damage borders on irreversible," said Axi strategist Stephen Innes. "The Covid-19 induced downward spiral continues accelerating." With an eye on next week's vote, he added: "We should expect price action to remain choppy in the days ahead, with investors very reluctant to put on any significant risk ahead of what promises to be a headline heavy week or two." With the pandemic fuelling demand for computers and video game consoles as people rely on the internet to work, learn, and play more at home, Advanced Micro Devices announced a deal to buy computer chip-making rival Xilinx for $35 billion. Shares in AMD fell 0.4 percent as trading got underway, even though the company also reported third quarter profit more than tripled from a year ago to $390 million as revenue grew 56 percent to $2.8 billion, beating expectations. A number of leading US companies posted earnings reports that beat expectations, including Caterpillar, 3M, Pfizer and Merck. But analysts at Charles Schwab brokerage said that at this point for investors "actual earnings numbers may be less important than what corporate leaders say about their expectations" for the future. Given the amount of uncertainty many companies are not providing full-year guidance on their earnings, however. London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 5,776.42 points Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 0.4 percent at 12,125.25 Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 1.1 percent at 4,762.68 EURO STOXX 50: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,089.00 New York - Dow: DOWN less than 0.1 percent at 27,656.68 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: FLAT at 23,485.80 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 0.5 percent at 24,787.19 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 3,254.32 (close) Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1828 from $1.1808 at 2115 GMT Dollar/yen: DOWN at 104.62 yen from 104.84 yen Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3041 from $1.3021 Euro/pound: UP at 90.71 pence from 90.67 pence West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.3 percent at $38.84 per barrel Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.3 percent at $40.72 per barrel burs-rl/bmm
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