By midmorning Germany's Dax had tumbled 2%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 had pared 2.7%, and France's CAC 40 was down 2.9%. This stood in stark contrast to Tokyo where investors greeted news of the president-elect with a 4.5% increase in the Nikkei.
"Investors are placing their hope in Barack Obama, who they believe has more economic expertise than his rival John McCain," wrote analysts at Landesbank Berlin in a morning note. "From our view, the powder for continued significant gains has already been used up. Investors will now once again busy themselves with the massive economic problems and the uncertainty over corporate earnings." - Andrew Bulkeley
