Font: BBC
UK stocks have followed falls in Asian and European markets after Donald Trump won the US election. The FTSE 100 index was down about 0.5% to 6,812 in the first hour, although that was less steep than expected. Other major European stock markets are also lower, with money flowing into safe haven stocks, gold and currencies including the yen. Traders had expected Hillary Clinton to beat Mr Trump to become the next US president. Some analysts have likened the shock of a Trump victory to the Brexit result earlier this year. However, neither markets nor currencies have swung as wildly as they did after June's EU referendum. Many Asian markets saw losses narrow towards the end of Wednesday trading. Japan's Nikkei 225 closed down by 5.4%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong is trading 2.2% lower and the Shanghai Composite has lost 0.6%. Follow the BBC's live page for more election coverage US stock futures fell sharply as Mr Trump's lead became clear, although the Dow Jones index is now expected to lose 2% - about 400 points when it reopens - compared to earlier predictions of a 4% fall. The main fallers on the FTSE so far have been asset managers, banks and life insurance companies, while pharmaceutical firms, gold and mining companies are the biggest winners.
Other European stock markets have fared less well, with France's Cac index and Germany's Dax each down nearly 2%. Donald Trump said it would be like Brexit plus plus plus. And for investors as they wake up to the news of Mr Trump's victory, the feeling will be very similar to that day in June. The dollar is already weakening against "safe haven" currencies such as the Japanese yen.
Two forces are in play. First, many investors are unclear about the economic direction of travel of a Trump presidency, both domestically and in the wider world. And second, Mr Trump has pledged to "tear up" international free trade agreements, a move which many believe will be bad for global economic growth. Kathleen Brooks, an analyst at City Index, said markets were calming down after the initial shock. "This suggests that a win for President Trump is not yet America's Brexit moment. US Treasuries have reversed earlier gains, and yields are rising." The pound has strengthened against the dollar, rising 0.3% to go back above $1.24, while the euro is 0.8% higher against the US currency. The Japanese yen, viewed as a safe haven currency in situations of international volatility, strengthened by 3% against the dollar.
'Trade war'
US investor Jim Rogers - who bet against the US stock market, believing Donald Trump would win - said US assets were taking a hit because of concerns about Mr Trump 's foreign policy. "Just about everything will go down," he told the BBC's Today programme. "If he wins, it's going to rattle people because he talks about trade wars." Meanwhile, concerns about the impact of a Trump presidency on the Mexican economy saw its currency, the peso, fall more than 13% against the dollar to its lowest level in two decades. Mexico is expected to suffer if Mr Trump is elected, because of his pledges to build a wall along the US border with the country and renegotiate the two nations' trade Agreement.
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