Wall Street Shrugs Off Stubborn Oil Prices, For Now

Wall Street is heading for a choppy open, as conflict in the Middle East intensifies after drones were allegedly fired on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, Iraq last night. A United Arab Emirates' (UAE) gas field and oil tanker near the Strait of Hormuz were also hit, discouraging signs for investors seeking some stability to crude production. Brent crude was last seen back up over $100 per barrel.

Nevertheless, futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) have pushed into the black, while Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX), and S&P 500 Index (SPX) futures struggle for direction. 

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• Plus, LLY downgraded; Semtech profit taking; and Uber doubles down with Nvidia.

5 Things You Need to Know Today

1. The Cboe Options Exchange saw roughly 1.9 million call contracts and 1.4 million put contracts traded on Monday. The single-session equity put/call ratio spiked to 0.76, while the 21-day moving average remained at 0.59. 
2. Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY) stock is 1.5% lower ahead of the bell, after HSBC downgraded the drugmaker to "reduce" from "hold." The analyst in coverage also trimmed its price target to $850 from $1,070, citing the market for obesity drugs as "inflated." Eli Lilly stock is 8% lower on the year heading into today.
3. Semtech Corp (NASDAQ:SMTC) stock is down 1.1% before the open, even after the chip supplier reported a beat-and-raise for the fourth quarter. Four brokerages hiked their price targets as well, the highest coming from Oppenheimer to $110 from $100. SMTC is 20.7% higher on the year and up 125% year-over-year.
4. The shares of Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE:UBER) are 3.6% higher in electronic trading, after the ride-sharing giant announced a plan with Nvidia (NVDA) to rollout robotaxis in 28 cities starting next year. UBER will be looking to chip away at its 2026 deficit of 8.6%.
5. Take a look at what's on deck for this week's economic schedule.

European Markets Resilient in the Face of Oil Price Spikes

Asian markets were mixed amid crude supply worries and a boost in the auto and tech sectors. Nvidia’s revenue outlook and work with local car manufacturers at its GTC conference are also in focus. For the day, Japan’s Nikkei inched 0.1% lower and China’s Shanghai Composite lost 0.9%. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong added 0.1%, while South Korea’s Kospi tacked on 1.6%.

European bourses are also brushing off resurgent oil prices. Utilities, commodities, and auto stocks are leading gains, as traders try to keep up with geopolitical updates. At last glance, London’s FTSE 100 is up 0.7%, Germany’s DAX has added 0.2%, and France’s CAC 40 is 0.6% higher.