US stocks end mostly up as markets wait on midterms

Wall Street stocks finished mostly higher on Tuesday as oil prices continued to pull back, while markets awaited results from US midterm elections that could reshape US President Donald Trump's final two years in office. Crude prices, which fell sharply on Monday on revived talk of US-Iran peace prospects, fell modestly hours after Trump insisted that a deal with Tehran "could happen," with traders also citing unconfirmed Middle East media reports saying progress on Iran's nuclear programme and frozen funds had been made. The prospect of easing energy costs helped Wall Street steady after several sessions of losses, in particular on the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which enjoyed a positive session after three straight declines. "Stocks are recovering from yesterday's bearish afternoon reversal even as the odds of a blue sweep have risen throughout the past few hours," said a note from Jose Torres of Interactive Brokers. "The fact that equities are advancing in light of the Democrats being likely to win majority control across both chambers of Congress signals that a near-term bottom could be behind us, since an overall flip was the most feared outcome." Americans voted on Tuesday with Democrats hoping to seize control of Congress and impose the first significant checks on Trump's...