U.S.-China Trade Tensions Push Dow Futures Down Triple Digits

Following confirmation by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer that tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods will increase this Friday, May 10, if no deal is reached, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are once again in the red. Chinese Vice Premier Liu He is expected in the U.S. for trade talks later this week. Meanwhile, futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are also suffering, while the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) -- or Wall Street's "fear gauge" -- is set to extend yesterday's surge.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• Senior V.P. of Research Todd Salamone tells us how a lack of euphoria could lead the SPX higher.
• Auto supplier moving on tariff tensions. 
• Booming blue-chip attracts pre-earnings options bulls. 
• Plus, 2 stocks swimming in bull notes; and SeaWorld reports earnings.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 963,040 call contracts traded on Monday, compared to 607,530 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.63, while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.60.
2. Despite reporting a first-quarter loss, GW Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:GWPH) is being showered in bull notes, after its epilepsy drug, Epidiolex, met its main goal in its late-stage trial. No fewer than six brokerage firms have handed over a price-target hike, and Oppenheimer upgraded GWPH to "outperform" from "perform." GWPH is up 8.3% in pre-market trading, on pace to catapult well past its early March record highs.
3. Work-wear apparel name Duluth Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:DLTH) is up 1.8% ahead of the bell, after receiving an upgrade to "outperform" from "neutral" at Baird. This bull note comes just over a month after the stock suffered a drastic post-earnings bear gap on April 5, which had the shares down 34% year-to-date at last night's close.
4. Although the company reported a better-than-expected rise in admission and revenue, SeaWorld Entertainment Inc (NYSE:SEAS) is flat in pre-market action. SEAS has been in a channel of lower highs since peaking at $32.47 in mid-September, but remains more than 19% higher year-to-date.
5. Today will present a speech from Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan, as well as the Labor Department's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). It will be a busy day for earnings, with 3D Systems (DDD), Electronic Arts (EA), Lyft (LYFT), Match Group (MTCH), Mylan N.V. (MYL), Qorvo (QRVO), TripAdvisor (TRIP), Western Union (WU), and Wingstop (WING) all reporting.

Financial Sector Weighs on European Stocks

There was mixed trading in Asian markets, as investors continue to determine the seriousness of the latest U.S.-China trade spat. China’s Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng managed to rise after Monday’s brutal sell-off, gaining 0.7% and 0.5%, respectively. However, the Nikkei pulled back, closing down 1.5%, and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.9%.

In Europe, stocks are mostly lower at midday, weighed down by weakness in the financial sector. Corporate earnings are also in focus, highlighted by a disappointing report out of BMW, while a lackluster update on industrial orders in Germany for March is the top story on the data front. London’s FTSE 100 was last seen down 0.9%, France’s CAC 40 has shed 0.7%, and Germany’s DAX is off by 0.6%.