But the prospect of another cut in official interest rates and a horse race are likely to dominate investors' attention today.

Most people are waiting for the Reserve Bank's decision at 2:30pm AEST, and, then tomorrow the result of the US presidential election being held on Tuesday US time.

Chris Zappone, BusinessDay, says in the Sydney Morning Herald today that the market will have half an hour to digest the RBA's decision before investors take a few minutes off to watch the Melbourne Cup at 3pm AEST.

Australia’s all ordinaries index was down across all sectors, with the big miners leading the falls, but managed to keep just above the critical 4000 points barrier, standing at 4099 at lunch time.

With Melbourne's stock exchange closed for a horse race, the market is reporting light trading today.

This morning, the $A was buying US67.61c, 67.11 yen and 53.63 euro cents.

Overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased by 5.18 points, to 9319.83, levelling off after last week’s gains.

Indeed, the 30-stock gauge posted its smallest daily swing in two months - considered a sign that a degree of stability might be returning to the market at last.

The S&P 500 lost 2.45 points, or 0.3pc, to 966.3.

The Nasdaq Index rose by 5.38, or 0.3pc, to 1726.33.

During Monday (US time), a report showed US factory activity fell to a 26-year low in October, with the Institute for Supply Management reported figures showing the lowest level since September 1982.