A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Climb Ahead Of First Trading Session Of 2021

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade on the first day of the new year. Operation Warp Speed Chief Adviser Moncef Slaoui said Sunday that Moderna Inc’s MRNA coronavirus vaccine could be administered at half the regular volume to some people in order to bolster availability..

The manufacturing PMI for December is scheduled for release at 9:45 a.m. ET, while data on construction spending for November will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans and Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic will speak at 10:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester is set to speak at 12:15 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 173 points to 30,670.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 22.75 points to 3,771.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 65.75 points to 12,951.25.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 20,639,210 with around 351,580 deaths. India reported a total of at least 10,340,460 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 7,733,740 cases.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1.1% to trade at $52.37 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.6% to trade at $48.81 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The Spanish Ibex Index rose 1.6% and STOXX Europe 600 Index surged 1.7%. The French CAC 40 Index rose 1.8%, German DAX 30 gained 1.3% while London's FTSE 100 climbed 3.1%. UK manufacturing PMI climbed to 57.5 in December versus a preliminary estimate of 57.3, while German manufacturing PMI declined to 58.3 in December compared to a preliminary reading of 58.6. Eurozone manufacturing PMI was revised lower to 55.2 for December versus an initial redaing of 55.5. 

Asian markets traded mostly higher today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 0.68%, China’s Shanghai Composite surged 0.86%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.89% and India’s BSE Sensex gained 0.7%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.5%. Japan’s manufacturing PMI increase to 50 in December versus a consensus of 49.7, while China’s December manufacturing PMI dropped to 53, missing the market consensus of 54.8. Australia’s manufacturing PMI fell slightly to 55.7 last month. 

Broker Recommendation

KeyBanc initiated coverage on Airbnb Inc ABNB with a Sector Weight rating..

Airbnb shares rose 0.8% to $148.00 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Carl Icahn disposed of a sizeable amount of his stake in Herbalife Nutrition Ltd HLF, the Wall Street Journal reported.
• Roku, Inc ROKU is in advanced negotiations to acquire rights to the content library of Quibi, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• Xpeng Inc – ADR XPEV reported a 112% year-over-year surge in electric vehicle deliveries for 2020.
• MGM Resorts International MGM increased its offer for Entain Plc to 8.1 billion pound ($11.1 billion).