An air of caution hung over U.S. stock markets early Tuesday, as American voters headed to the polls in a presidential election that analysts say is still too close to call.
Trading on global equities markets was moribund as investors waited for the outcome of the presidential race. In the U.S., futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1 point to 18,190, while those for the S&P 500 index were down 0.35 point at 2,128.75. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 index lost 4 points to 4,771.75.
On Monday, all three benchmarks scored their best day since March, as stocks staged a relief rally globally. The rally came after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said its fresh review of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's emails wouldn't lead to charges. The S&P 500 jumped 2.2%, while the Dow average reclaimed the key 18,000 level with a 2.1% jump.
On Tuesday, however, traders were a bit more cautious as voting kicked off in the election.
"Markets and polling are looking for a Clinton win today, but the margin in the polling is not sufficient to give any sense of comfort. This is more so after the experience of the Brexit vote back in June, where the polls were suggesting a win for the 'remain' side and the vote went the other way," said Simon Smith, chief economist at FxPro, in a note.
Clinton currently has a 3 point lead over Republican rival Donald Trump, according to the RealClearPolitics average of polls. The spread widened on Monday after the FBI news. Financial markets in general view a Clinton win as the better outcome because it represents continuity and the likelihood of more stability for markets in the short term.
The dollar was little changed in Tuesday's trade, with the ICE Dollar Index off 0.2% at 97.606.