DJIA futures are signaling a triple-digit dive, pressured by flagging crude oil prices
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are swimming in red ink amid another sharp decline in oil prices. Specifically, April-dated crude futures were last seen 3.1% lower at $30.91 per barrel, after Saudi Arabia yesterday ruled out production cuts and the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a bigger-than-expected build in oil stockpiles. Meanwhile, traders are digesting remarks from Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer -- who said central bank officials "simply do not know" what they will do at their next meeting -- and Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker, who asserted interest-rate hikes remain a possibility.
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Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are nearly 164 points below fair value.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- Chinese markets bucked the global trend lower amid talk of potential government initiatives to boost state-owned enterprises.
- The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 602,882 call contracts traded on Tuesday, compared to 429,382 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio jumped to 0.71, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.74.
- On the heels of upbeat earnings from one major rival, home improvement retailer Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) reported in-line quarterly profits and better-than-forecast sales, and provided upbeat revenue guidance for 2016. Nevertheless, LOW is pointed 3.2% lower ahead of the bell, after settling Tuesday at $67.90.
- According to Reuters, New York regulators and four major shareholders have requested that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) compel energy giant Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) to add a climate change resolution to its annual shareholder proxy. While the stock is unchanged in electronic trading, option traders have been lining up to place bearish bets on XOM, which closed at $81.23 yesterday.
- Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) has been ordered to pay the Fox family $72 million in damages after Jacqueline Fox died from ovarian cancer linked to the use of the company's talc-based products. The news has JNJ shares off nearly 1% pre-market, after closing yesterday at $104.08.
Earnings and Economic Data
New home sales data will be in focus today, as well as the regularly scheduled crude inventories report. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard will step up to the mic after the close.
Stepping up to the earnings plate are Chesapeake Energy (CHK), Salesforce.com (CRM), Transocean LTD (RIG), IMAX (IMAX), L Brands (LB), Mobileye NV (MBLY), NetEase (NTES), Target (TGT), TerraForm Power (TERP), TJX Companies (TJX), Vipshop (VIPS), and Whiting Petroleum (WLL). To see what else is coming up on this week's agenda, click here.