A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Higher; Crude Oil Down 4%

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade after the Dow Jones dropped more than 200 points in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Vail Resorts, Inc. MTN, CECO Environmental Corp. CECE and Calavo Growers, Inc. CVGW.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 235 points to 33,160.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures rose 22 points to 4,223.50. Futures for the Nasdaq index rose 33.75 points to 13,325.75.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 3.7% to trade at $108.53 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 4.1% to trade at $104.86 a barrel. The total number of active U.S. oil rigs gained by 8 to 527 rigs this week, Baker Hughes Inc reported Friday.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 81,174,670 with around 993,810 deaths. India reported a total of at least 42,993,490 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 29,368,770 cases.

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A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index gained 0.5%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index rose 1.5% and London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.1%. The French CAC 40 Index rose 0.4%, while German DAX climbed 1.7%. French current account deficit declined to EUR 1.79 billion in January from EUR 7.04 billion in the prior month, while trade deficit shrank to EUR 8.03 billion from EUR 11.39 billion. Wholesale price inflation in Germany increased 16.6% year-over-year in February.

Asian markets traded mixed today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.58%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 4.97% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 2.6%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.2%, while India’s BSE SENSEX rose 1.3%. India's trade deficit widened to $20.88 billion in February versus a $13.12 billion gap a year ago, while annual wholesale price inflation rate increased to 13.11% in February from January's four-month low level of 12.96%. Total passenger vehicles sales in India surged 3.4% from the prior month to 262,984 units in February. Foreign direct investment into China climbed 37.9% year-over-year to CNY 243.7 billion during the first two months of 2022. China placed Shenzhen into a lockdown for at least a week amid a surge in COVID-19 infections and city authorities will carry out three rounds of city-wide mass testing next week, the South China Morning Post reported.

Broker Recommendation

Keybanc upgraded Olin Corporation OLN from Sector Weight to Overweight and announced a $64 price target.

Olin shares fell 0.2% to $48.58 in pre-market trading.

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Breaking News

• Rio Tinto Group RIO made an all-cash proposal to acquire remaining shares in Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. TRQ it does not own for C$34 per share.
• International Paper Company IP announced plans to explore strategic options, including the possible sale, for its ownership interest in Ilim Group.
• Oil-Dri Corporation of America ODC reported upbeat results for its second quarter on Friday.
• Apple Inc. AAPL supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd. HNHPF has halted production of iPhones at its site in the Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen due to a government-imposed COVID-19 lockdown, Bloomberg reported Sunday.

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