All three major indexes are higher ahead of the open
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are up 142 points ahead of the open this morning, as Wall Street attempts to keep last week's rally going despite yesterday's mild losses, while futures on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) point modestly higher as well. Meanwhile, several big bank names raised their dividends, and the U.S. trade deficit in goods fell for the second month in a row -- narrowing 2.2% in May.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 885,218 call contracts and 545,491 put contracts traded on Monday. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.62, and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.64.
- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) is up 2.4% premarket, after news that Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) raised its stake to 16.4% from 16.3%. Year-to-date, the equity is up an impressive 103.2%.
-
Jefferies Financial Group Inc (NYSE:JEF) is down 2.9% in electronic trading, after the company's mixed second-quarter results. After the event, KBW slashed its price target to $30 from $33 and Oppenheimer to $43 from $47. JEF has been rebounding from its mid-June one-year low.
-
Casino stock Las Vegas Sands Corp (NYSE:LVS) is jumping up 8.4% before the bell, after China eased Covid-19 quarantine rules for international visitors. Several of its sector peers are enjoying a bounce as well.
- Today will bring April's year-over-year S&P Case-Shiller U.S. home price index and the consumer confidence index for June.
Asian, European Markets Move Higher
The rebound for equities across the globe has resumed, sending Asian markets higher on Tuesday. Investors monitored an overnight drop in the major U.S. indexes but ultimately posted gains, with the Hong Kong Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite both tacking on 0.9%, the South Korean Kospi adding 0.8%, and the Nikkei in Japan rising 0.7%. Separately, news came out that China has decided to cut its Covid-19 quarantine period to seven days from 14, with an additional three days at home.
In Europe, markets are also on the rise as traders observed moves made in both Asia and the U.S. Eyes are also on the Group of Seven (G7) meeting in Germany regarding support for Ukraine, which will conclude today. At last glance, the London FTSE 100 is 1.3% higher and the French CAC 40 is 1.4% higher. The German DAX is sporting slightly more muted gains, up 1% following the release of the GfK German consumer confidence survey, which showed that European consumer sentiment is expected to drop to a record low in July.