Asia-Pacific markets mixed after Wall Street rallies ahead of U.S. election results

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

SINGAPORE — Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Wednesday after Wall Street surged overnight ahead of the U.S. presidential election results.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was leading gains, up 2%, while the Topix rose 1.5%.

The Bank of Japan September monetary policy meeting minutes showed members were in agreement over the central bank raising rates if economic and price growth meets expectations.

South Korea's Kospi was trading down 1%, while the Kosdaq fell 1.3%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 2.7%, while mainland China's CSI 300 was flat in choppy trading.

A five-day meeting of China's National People's Congress will continue on Wednesday, with investors watching for information on additional stimulus and polices aimed at stabilizing the economy.

In a meeting on Tuesday, the head of the People's Bank of China said that the central bank planned to maintain supportive monetary policy, according to state media.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.83% to end at 8,199.5.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 index gained 1.23% to close at 5,782.76, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.43% to 18,439.17. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 427.28 points, or 1.02%, to settle at 42,221.88.

The race between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to be tight. Focus will also be on Congressional polling, given that a sweep by either party could impact spending and tax policy.

Follow CNBC's 2024 election live blog here.

— CNBC's Jesse Pound and Samantha Subin contributed to this report.

Nintendo rises over 5% as company says its next console will be compatible with Switch games

Nintendo shares rose 5.6% after the videogame maker announced its next console will be compatible with current Switch games in its financial results and company policy briefing.

The news comes just a day after the company cut its forecast for Switch sales for the fiscal year ending March 2025 amid weak demand for its latest console.

Further information about the new Switch console will come at a later date, Nintendo said.

— Dylan Butts

Bitcoin surges to a new record of $75,000 as traders bet Trump has election edge

Bitcoin rallied Tuesday evening hitting an all-time high as investors bet former President Donald Trump was gaining an edge in the U.S. election.

The price of the flagship cryptocurrency touched a record $75,000 on the nose, according to Coin Metrics. Its gains increased as Trump took an early lead in the Electoral College, even though none of the major swing states were called yet by NBC News.

Exchange operator Coinbase rose 3% in after hours trading, while MicroStrategy, advanced 4%.

For more on bitcoin's price action on election night read our full story here.

— Tanaya Macheel

New Zealand's unemployment rate rises by a less-than-expected 4.8%

New Zealand's unemployment rate continued to climb in the third quarter amid a grim economic outlook, but came in below analysts' estimates. 

Statistics New Zealand reported a 4.8% rise in the country's unemployment rate for the September quarter, below the 5% estimated by economists polled by Reuters. The rate was up from 4.6% in the previous quarter.

Meanwhile, jobs growth fell 0.5% for the quarter, slightly more than the estimated 0.4%.

— Dylan Butts

10-year Treasury yield pops

Treasury yields jumped in early trading Tuesday evening as traders saw former President Donald Trump having an edge in the election.

The 10-year Treasury yield jumped 16 basis points at 4.44%, hitting its highest level since July 2. The yield on the 2-year Treasury was up by 10 basis points to 4.30%. One basis point is equivalent to 0.01%. Yields and prices have an inverted relationship.

Even though none of the major swing states were called yet by NBC News, traders speculated the early returns were favoring Trump.

Bond yields could see a big pop in the event of a Trump win, and they could surge in a Republican sweep, where the party captures control of Congress and the White House. That is because Republicans may introduce tax cuts and steep tariffs, moves that could widen the fiscal deficit and reignite inflation.

"Bonds are selling off across the yield curve massively as the Trump trade gets applied again," wrote Byron Anderson, head of fixed income at Laffer Tengler Investments. "We see markets expecting a Trump victory and a real possibility of a Republican sweep."

— Yun Li

BOJ members favor rate hikes if economic and price growth targets are met, meeting minutes show

The Bank of Japan on Wednesday released minutes of its September monetary policy meeting, which showed members largely in agreement on raising interest rates if economic and price growth were on expected lines.

The bank expects the economy to keep growing at a pace above its potential growth rate, and has set its inflation target at 2%.

At the end of the September policy meeting, the BOJ had kept interest rates steady at 0.25%.

Members said economic developments in Japan generally aligned with the July 2024 outlook, with sustained wage hikes and consumption growth.

— Dylan Butts

CNBC Pro: Buy these 3 stocks — whatever the election result, analyst says

As the results of one of the most hotly contested elections in the U.S. come in, investors are scrambling to position for the most likely outcome.

Shelby McFaddin, senior analyst at Motley Fool Asset Management, said she expects volatility this week, but a "limited impact on long-term investments as markets await real policy implications."

Any bets made before the results are final are "pure speculation," she told CNBC's "Street Signs Asia" on Nov. 5. "Either potential administrations would bring an increase in infrastructure spending and inflation remains a concern."

Looking past the election result, McFaddin named three stocks she likes right now.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Amala Balakrishner

CNBC Pro: These 2 stocks beat the S&P 500 in election Novembers no matter who won

Two stocks have outperformed the S&P 500 every November when elections have been held over the past three decades — regardless of the outcome, according to a CNBC Pro study.

CNBC Pro screened for stocks currently in the MSCI World Index that gained more than the S&P 500 — or lost less than the index — in November of every election year since 1988. The 36-year period has seen four Republicans and five Democrats elected to the White House.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more about the two stocks here.

— Ganesh Rao

Watching the dollar will be critical Tuesday night, strategist says

Investors should keep a close eye on the dollar Tuesday night, according to Jefferies chief market strategist David Zervos.

"That will be the most liquid and the most transparent messaging to what we are getting markets to do, because that's where people can put money to work fast. It's going to be hard to put money, obviously, into any sector, credit. There won't be liquidity for that in bonds," he said on CNBC's "Money Movers" on Tuesday morning. "In times of stress we go to the dollar, at least temporarily, especially if it's global stress and even if it's U.S.-led stress."

Investors widely expect the U.S. dollar will become stronger if Trump regains the presidency. Zervos added that many in the speculative community have bet on the dollar-China trade as a Trump-winning trade.

— Lisa Kailai Han

Investors should sell a Trump rally or buy a Harris dip, says Citi's Scott Chronert

Investors should sell a potential rally in the market if Trump wins the election, according to Citi's Scott Chronert.

"Your starting point is a fairly extended valuation circumstance that's predicated on very strong earnings growth follow-through into 2025," the bank's U.S. equity strategist told CNBC's "Squawk on the Street" on Tuesday. "Our concern is that with that set up, you go into a Trump win and you introduce tariffs into the discussion … [and] 2025 growth expectations become a bit more suspect as we navigate tariff action."

On the other hand, if Harris is victorious, Chronert said investors should consider buying an anticipated market dip. 

"It really comes down to Trump and tariffs, and Harris and taxes," he said.

— Sean Conlon

Oil market could face volatility if Trump wins, Goldman Sachs says

A second Trump administration is more likely to bring volatility to the oil market, according to Goldman Sachs.

Donald Trump could tighten sanctions on Iran, reducing supply from the Islamic Republic and putting upward pressure on prices in the short term, the investment bank told clients in a Monday note.

Oil prices rose about 1% as voters in the U.S. headed to the polls. U.S. crude oil had gained 35 cents, or 0.49%, to $71.82 per barrel by 8:56 a.m. ET. Global benchmark Brent crude futures added 33 cents, or 0.44%, to $75.41 per barrel.

"Conceptually, the impact of a potential second Trump term on oil prices is ambiguous," Yulia Zhestkova Grigsby, vice president of commodity research at Goldman Sachs, told clients in a note Monday.

Over the medium term, however, a second Trump administration could heighten trade tensions through tariffs, putting downward pressure on global oil demand and prices, according to Goldman.

— Spencer Kimball

Stocks could sell off after election, Nomura says

Strategists at Nomura think stocks could see a bout of selling after the U.S. presidential election, given current positioning among hedge funds and other major investors.

"The substantial accumulation of long positions in U.S. equities by real-money investors and macro hedge funds (among others) suggests that the market reaction to a red sweep could be an initial spike followed not long thereafter by a bout of 'selling the fact,'" Nomura said in a note.

Indeed, the S&P 500 is less than 3% below a record high set Oct. 17.

— Fred Imbert

Stocks rise on presidential election days, recent history shows

It is shaping up to be another winning presidential Election Day for stocks.

The Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are all tracking for gains on Tuesday. If that holds through session close, it would mark the fifth straight positive presidential Election Day for the blue-chip Dow.

What's more, 2024 would be the sixth winning presidential Election Day in a row for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq.

— Alex Harring, Peter Schacknow