A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Surge; Crude Oil Up Over 6%

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Data on existing home sales for February will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Total coronavirus cases in the US exceeded 14,000 with around 200 deaths. Iran confirmed a total of over 18,000 cases, while Italy reported a total of at least 41,000 confirmed cases and 3,400 deaths.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 897 points to 20,772 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 105 points to 2,494.00. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 355.5 points to 7,629.00.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 6.3% to trade at $30.27 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 6.2% to trade at $26.78 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest quarter is scheduled for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 4.1%, STOXX Europe 600 Index climbing 3.6% and German DAX 30 index gaining 4.9%. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 3%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 4.8%.

In Asian markets, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 5.05%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.61% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 4.4%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at JP Morgan upgraded Oracle Corporation ORCL from Neutral to Overweight.

Oracle shares rose 4.2% to $46.97 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Deltix, Inc. agreed to be acquired by EPAM Systems Inc EPAM.
• Tesla Inc TSLA announced plans to temporarily suspend production at its Fremont factory starting Monday following the novel coronavirus outbreak. The company noted that it has $8.6 billion in cash reserves.
• Ollie's Bargain Outlet Holdings Inc OLLI reported weaker-than-expected results for its fourth quarter on Thursday.
• Cintas Corporation CTAS reported upbeat earnings for its third quarter, but withdrew its FY20 guidance.