European session review: USD mixed as investors digest developments in tight U.S. presidential race

USD traded mixed against other major currencies in the European session on Wednesday as investors digested the latest developments in an exceedingly tight U.S. presidential race.  The U.S. currency rose against GBP, AUD, CAD and NZD, but fell against JPY, CHF and EUR. The U.S. Dollar Index (DXY), measuring the U.S. currency's value relative to a basket of foreign currencies, dropped 0.21% to 93.36.

The outcome of one of the most controversial U.S. presidential races in U.S. history remains uncertain as the results in several key battleground states are still unknown. According to The New York Times, Democratic challenger Joe Biden leads in the electoral college 227-213. Of the states that have yet to be decided, President Trump is leading in Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Alaska and Georgia. Meanwhile, Joe Biden is leading in Nevada, Arizona, and Wisconsin. It could take "several days" to count all the ballots in certain states. 

However, despite the fact that millions of votes had yet to be counted, the incumbent U.S. president Donald Trump falsely asserted election fraud, pledged to mount a legal challenge to official state results and declared victory early Wednesday. "We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election," he said. "This is a major fraud on our nation. We want the law to be used in a proper manner. So we'll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop."

Regarding the Senate races, both parties have won 47 Senate seats so far. Early vote counts also suggest that Democrats are to keep control of the House of Representatives.

Uncertain election results heightened the risk of a disputed outcome, which could include lengthy legal battles, bolstering investors to buy safer assets.