A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Signal Higher Start On Wall Street; Crude Oil Rises Over 3%

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones surged more than 200 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Palo Alto Networks Inc PANW and JD.Com Inc JD.

The Chicago Fed National Activity Index for July is scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the flash Composite Purchasing Managers' Index for August is scheduled for release at 9:45 a.m. ET. Growth rates in the PMIs have remained strong in the recent period. Services index is expected to decline slightly to 59.7 in August from prior reading of 59.8, while manufacturing index might remain unchanged at 63.1. Data on existing home sales for July will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 127 points to 35,185.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 12.50 points to 4,449.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 38 points to 15,124.75.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 37,709,970 with around 628,500 deaths. India reported a total of at least 32,449,300 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 20,570,890 cases.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures gained 3.3% to trade at $67.32 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 3.3% to trade at $64.19 a barrel. The total number of active U.S. oil rigs rose by 8 to 405 rigs this week, Baker Hughes Inc reported Friday.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.1% and STOXX Europe 600 Index gained 0.3%. The French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.7%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.4% while German DAX 30 gained 0.2%. The IHS Markit Eurozone services PMI declined slightly to 59.7 in August from 59.8 in the previous month, while manufacturing PMI dropped to 61.5 from 62.8. German composite PMI fell to 60.6 in August from 62.4 in July, while French composite PMI dropped to 55.9 in August from 56.6. UK’s services PMI fell to 55.5 in August from 59.6 a month ago, while manufacturing PMI slipped to 60.1 from 60.4.

Asian markets traded higher today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.78%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 1.05%, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.45%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.5%. Japanese services PMI declined to 43.5 in August from a final reading of 47.4 in the previous month, while manufacturing PMI fell to 52.4 from 53.0. Australian services PMI dropped to 43.3 in August from 44.2 in July, while manufacturing PMI declined to 51.7 from 56.9.

Broker Recommendation

Keybanc initiated coverage on Robinhood Markets, Inc. HOOD with an Overweight rating and announced a price target of $55.

Robinhood shares rose 1.6% to $43.30 in pre-market trading.

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Breaking News

• The mRNA vaccine developed by Pfizer, Inc. PFE and its partner BioNTech SE – ADR BNTX against the novel coronavirus could receive full approval as early as Monday, the New York Times reported. Their vaccine was the first to receive emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
• Bitcoin BTC/USD crossed the psychologically important $50,000 level on Sunday night.
• Bit Digital Inc BTBT reported a net loss of $1.3 million, or $0.03 per share for the second quarter, versus a year-ago net loss of $0.3 million, or $0.01 per share in the year-ago period. Revenue from bitcoin mining came in at $28.3 million.
• BeiGene, Ltd. BGNE reported acceptance of supplemental Biologics License Application in China for tislelizumab in nasopharyngeal cancer.

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