Wall Street's fear index is set to soar
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are deep in the red this morning, down 445 points after President Donald Trump reignited trade war fears in a series of tweets. Specifically, Trump threatened to raise tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25% from 10% this Friday, May 10, and said another $325 billion of Chinese goods will be slapped with a 25% tariff. China is now reportedly considering backing out of the this week's trade talks. As such, futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are also notably lower, while the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) -- or Wall Street's "fear gauge" -- is set to skyrocket.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Analyst says this cancer stock could surge 51%.
- Put buyers took profits on this pharma stock's slide.
- This drug stock is an "undervalued growth story."
- Plus, one drug giant's post-earnings surge; an underperforming food stock; and Pinterest stock's underwhelming analyst note.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
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The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.25 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 651,176 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.52, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.60.
- Bausch Health Companies Inc (NYSE:BHC) is up 2.7% in early trading, after the pharmaceutical name raised its full-year guidance, despite reporting a first-quarter revenue miss. Set to open just above $24, BHC recently flashed a historic buy signal.
- Food distributor Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY) is down 0.7% this morning, as traders digest the firm’s fiscal third-quarter earnings report. Sysco stock is up nearly 19% from its late-December bottom, but has struggled to take the $71 area -- where SYY was trading before a November bear gap.
- New-to-the-scene Pinterest Inc (NYSE:PINS) is 3.7% lower ahead of the bell, after landing a fresh analyst note out of Susquehanna. The firm initiated coverage with a "neutral" rating and $35 price target, noting Pinterest's lack of clarity in engagement trends. This price point represents a 23% premium to Friday's close. PINS has only been trading publicly since April 18, but so far has managed to add just over 16%.
- A speech from Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker will encompass the economic schedule today. Meanwhile, Hertz Global (HTZ), Mosaic (MOS), Papa John's (PZZA), Rent-A-Center (RCII), Sysco (SYY), and Tyson Foods (TSN) will report earnings.
Trade Backlash Continues Overseas
President Trump’s tariff tweets also sent global markets spiraling. China’s Shanghai Composite fell 5.6% to trade at levels not seen since February, while the yuan also suffered heavy losses. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng closed down 2.9%, and Japan’s Nikkei gave back 0.2%. Rounding out the region, the South Korean Kospi finished with a 0.7% defeat.
With London’s FTSE 100 closed for holiday, markets in France and Germany are left to suffer the brunt of the trade-induced sell-off. At last check, the French CAC 40 was down 1.9%, and the German DAX was off 1.7%.