A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Mostly Higher As Trump Extends Coronavirus Unemployment Benefits

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mostly higher in early pre-market trade, after President Donald Trump on Saturday signed orders extending Covid-19 relief program. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Marriott International Inc MAR, Duke Energy Corp DUK and Occidental Petroleum Corporation OXY. The Labor Department's JOLTS report for June is scheduled for release at 10:00 a.m. ET.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 5,044,860 with around 162,930 deaths. Brazil confirmed over 3,035,420 cases, while India reported a total of at least 2,215,070 confirmed cases.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 88 points to 27,421 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 5.25 points to 3,350. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 1.75 points to 11,121.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1.1% to trade at $44.90 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 1.6% to trade at $41.86 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.8% and STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.4%. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.6%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.5% and German DAX 30 slipped 0.1%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.39%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 0.6% China’s Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.75% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.7%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Morgan Stanley downgraded Q2 Holdings, Inc. QTWO from Overweight to Equal-Weight and raised the price target from $73 to $95.

Q2 Holdings shares fell 2.7% to close at $99.80 on Friday.

Breaking News

• Twitter Inc TWTR is in discussions with China’s ByteDance Ltd. for a potential merger with TikTok in the US, the Wall Street Journal reported.
• Chinese electric vehicle maker XPeng Inc. filed for an IPO with the US Securities and Exchange Commission Friday.
• Roper Technologies Inc ROP is in talks to purchase Vertafore Inc for around $5.5 billion, according to Reuters.
• Hyundai Motor Co reported the launch of a brand dedicated to battery electric vehicles on Sunday.