A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Higher Ahead Of Powell

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones dipped more than 160 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from TD SYNNEX Corporation SNX and Albertsons Companies, Inc. ACI.

The NFIB small business optimism index for December is scheduled for release at 6:00 a.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City President Esther George is set to speak at 9:30 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will testify before the Senate Banking Committee at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 126 points to 36,078.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures gained 23.50 points to 4,685.75. Futures for the Nasdaq index rose 117 points to 15,725.00.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 62,661,270 with around 861,330 deaths. India reported a total of at least 35,875,790 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 22,558,690 cases.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1% to trade at $81.70 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures gained 1.2% to trade at $79.19 a barrel. The API’s data on crude oil stocks will be released today.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index climbed 0.8%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 0.5% and London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.3%. The French CAC 40 Index surged 0.9%, while German DAX climbed 0.9%. Spanish industrial production climbed 4.8% year-over-year in November following a revised 0.7% decline in the previous month. Retail sales in the United Kingdom rose 0.6% on a like-for-like basis from a year ago in December.

Asian markets traded mostly lower today. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.9%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slipped 0.03%, while China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.73%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.8% and India’s BSE Sensex gained 0.4%. The index of leading economic indicators in Japan rose to 103.0 in November from a final reading of 101.5 in the previous month, while index of coincident economic indicators rose to 93.6 in November from a final 89.8.

Broker Recommendation

Keybanc downgraded Intel Corporation INTC from Overweight to Sector Weight.

Intel shares rose 1.7% to $56.17 in pre-market trading.

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Breaking News

• Intel Corporation INTC disclosed leadership changes on Monday. The company named Micron Technology’s finance head David Zinsner as its executive vice president and chief financial officer. The company also said Executive Vice President Michelle Johnston Holthaus will lead its Client Computing Group.
• Illumina Inc ILMN issued strong sales forecast for 2022, and also reported four partnership agreements.
• Rogers Communications Inc. RCI named Tony Staffieri as President and CEO.
• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. ANF issued an update on its forecast for the 2021 fiscal year. The company said it sees preliminary FY21 net sales rising 19% to 20% from 2020. The company also projects Q4 net sales up in the range of 4% to 6% from 2020.

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