A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Mixed After Dow Records Another High

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mixed in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones surged to a new record closing high on Tuesday. Investors are awaiting earnings results from RPM International Inc. RPM, UniFirst Corporation UNF and Resources Connection, Inc. RGP.

The ADP national employment report for December is scheduled for release at 8:15 a.m. ET. The final services and composite PMI for December will be released at 9:45 a.m. ET, while the Federal Open Market Committee will issue minutes of its latest meeting at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 28 points to 36,703.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 0.25 points to 4,784.50. Futures for the Nasdaq index declined 35.75 points to 16,240.00.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 58,040,720 with around 851,430 deaths. India reported a total of at least 35,018,350 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 22,323,830 cases.

Oil prices traded lightly lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.1% to trade at $79.94 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.1% to trade at $76.88 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories in the U.S. is scheduled for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index gained 0.2%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index gained 0.1% and London’s FTSE 100 jumped 0.2%. The French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.5%, while German DAX rose 0.6%. The IHS Markit Eurozone composite PMI slipped to 53.3 in December from a preliminary reading of 53.4, while services PMI declined to 53.1 in December from a preliminary level of 53.3. The annual inflation rate in Italy rose to 3.9% in December from 3.7% in the prior month, while services PMI slipped to 53.0 in December from 55.9 in the prior month. The IHS Markit services PMI for France fell to 57 in December from a preliminary level of 57.1, while German services PMI was revised higher to 48.7 in December.

Asian markets traded mixed today. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.64%. China’s Shanghai Composite fell 1.02%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.3% and India’s BSE Sensex gained 0.6%. India’s composite PMI fell to a three-month low level of 56.4 in December from 59.2 in the earlier month. The consumer confidence index in Japan declined slightly to 39.1 in December from 39.2 in the previous month. The IHS Markit Hong Kong SAR PMI dropped to 50.8 in December compared to 52.6 a month ago.

Broker Recommendation

Piper Sandler upgraded Pinterest, Inc. PINS from Neutral to Overweight and lowered the price target from $58 to $53.

Pinterest shares rose 3.2% to $34.20 in pre-market trading.

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Breaking News

• SMART Global Holdings, Inc SGH reported upbeat results for its first quarter on Tuesday. The company said it sees Q2 adjusted earnings of $1.30 to $1.60 per share on sales of $415 million to $455 million.
• M.D.C. Holdings Inc's MDC homebuilding subsidiary, Richmond American Homes, has made solar options available in all regions it builds.
• Inspire Medical Systems, Inc. INSP reported strong preliminary sales results. The company said it sees Q4 revenue of $78 million to $78.4 million and FY21 revenue of $233 million to $233.4 million.
• Walmart Inc. WMT said it plans to hire more than 3,000 delivery drivers and establish an all-electric fleet of delivery vehicles as it expands its “InHome” grocery delivery service.

Check out other breaking news here