The WHO has declared the coronavirus a global public health emergency
U.S. stock futures are pointing to a mixed open for stocks, with earnings and the latest coronavirus headlines in focus. Traders are cheering a blowout report from FAANG name Amazon.com (AMZN), while Caterpillar (CAT) shares are moving lower due to the blue chip's disappointing 2020 outlook. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the coronavirus outbreak a global public health emergency last night, as cases of the virus are now being reported in the U.K. Against this backdrop, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are eyeing lower opens, though Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) futures are pointing to a positive start for the tech-heavy index.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- The layoff buzz that had LYFT stock in focus.
- Inside Coca-Cola's drive to record highs.
- Plus, Dow component's new leader; WWE shares get bombed; and auto stock surges on M&A news.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.30 million call contracts traded on Thursday compared to 792,135 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio was 0.61, and the 21-day moving average was 0.53.
- IBM Corp (NYSE:IBM) shares are trading 4% higher before the open following news the tech giant's CEO Ginni Rometty is retiring and will be replaced by Arvind Krishna, the Senior Vice President for Cloud and Cognitive Software. IBM stock sports a one-year gain of just 1.7% and most analysts are bearish.
- The shares of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:WWE) are also moving following a C-suite shake-up. The company's co-Presidents are leaving, and the news has the stock down almost 26% before the open. The equity had already shed one-fourth of its value in the last 12 months.
- One of the biggest pre-market winners this morning is Navistar International Corp (NYSE:NAV), jumping 56% after Volkswagen made an unsolicited buyout offer valued at $2.9 billion, or $35 per share. NAV shares closed Thursday at $24.07. Volkswagen's Traton unit already owns a nearly 17% stake in Navistar.
- Today is packed full of economic indicators, including the employment cost index, the core consumer price index (CPI), the Chicago purchasing managers index (PMI), and the University of Michigan consumer sentiment index. Data on personal income and consumer spending is also expected out, as well as quarterly reports from Chevron (CVX), Exxon Mobil (XOM), Colgate-Palmolive (CL), Honeywell (HON), and Stifel Financial (SF).
Global Markets Down Again on Virus Headwinds
It was mostly another lower session for Asian equities due to the ongoing fears around the coronavirus, though Japan's Nikkei managed a 1% win. In China, though, the Shanghai Composite fell 2.8%, and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gave back 0.5%. South Korea's Kospi declined by 1.4%. There are uniform losses in Europe at midday, too, where the FTSE 100 is down 0.7%, and the French CAC 40 and German DAX are down 0.4% each.