While this week will be one of the busiest times for retailers, it will likely be a quiet week for markets as the holidays will keep most market-moving data from being released.
Online retailers promising last minute delivery will be trying to squeak in last minute sales before the new year while brick and mortar shops are gearing up for an influx of shoppers on the day after Christmas.
In other news around the markets:
- Anti-government protests in Ukraine seemed to die down this weekend, but the opposition leader encouraged protestors to continue rallying through the holidays until President Viktor Yanukovich is removed from office. Yanukovich has become increasingly unpopular for turning his nose up at a trade deal with the EU and instead accepting a bailout deal from Russia last week.
- Following the US Federal Reserve’s surprisingly uneventful taper announcement, the International Monetary Fund said it sees the US economy growing at a faster pace next year. On Sunday, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said improving economic indicators as well as easing tension in Washington were the reason for the stronger outlook.
- Despite posting a $4.4 billion quarterly loss on Friday, BlackBerry’s stock rose as the company’s CEO John Chen announced that the company planned to focus on software and services and outsource its hardware business to an electronics manufacturer in Taiwan.
- Apple signed a highly anticipated deal with China Mobile, the world’s largest wireless carrier with more than 700 million subscribers. The iPhone will be available to the network’s customers on January 17th, but preregistration orders will be taken as early as Wednesday.
Asian markets were mostly higher, the Shanghai composite gained 0.24 percent, the South Korean KOSPI was up 0.68 percent and the Hang Seng index rose 0.48 percent.
European Markets
Europe’s markets were also on a high, the UK’s FTSE was up 0.41 percent and the eurozone’s STOXX 600 gained 0.21 percent. The German DAX was up 0.35 percent and Italy’s MIB gained 0.06 percent.
Energy futures were lower, Brent and WTI futures both fell by 0.40 percent. Gold lost 0.02 percent and sliver lost 0.25 percent. Industrial metals were up across the board with Zinc posting the largest gains, up 2.54 percent.
Currency markets were quiet, the euro gained 0.05 percent against the dollar and the pound was up 0.12 percent against the greenback. The dollar lost 0.10 percent against the yen and 0.09 percent against the Australian dollar.
Earnings
Notable earnings released on Friday included:
- BlackBerry BBRY reported a third quarter loss of $0.67 per share on revenue of $1.19 billion, compared to last year’s loss of $0.22 on revenue of $5.96 billion.
- Walgreen Co. WAG reported first quarter EPS of $0.72 on revenue of $18.33 billion, compared to last year’s EPS of $0.58 on revenue of $17.32 billion.
- Navistar International Corporation NAV reported a fourth quarter loss of $1.91 per share on revenue of $2.80 billion, compared to last year’s loss of $7.89 on revenue of $3.28 billion.
Stocks moving in the Premarket included:
- Darden Restaurants Inc. DRI gained 3.74 percent in premarket trade after falling 1.05 percent over the past week.
- JP Morgan Chase JPM rose 1.72 percent in premarket trade after gaining 2.72 percent over the past five days
- Carnival Corp CCL was up 1.52 percent in premarket trade after rising 2.10 percent on Friday
- Transocean Ltd. RIG gained 1.23 percent in premarket trade after falling 2.53 percent over the past week
- Bank of America Corp BAC was up 1.03 percent in premarket trade after falling 0.95 percent on Friday
No notable earnings releases expected on Monday.
Economics
Monday’s economic calendar will be thin with very few releases. Investors will be watching for US personal income data, Canadian GDP, Italian consumer confidence and the Norwegian unemployment rate.
For a recap of Friday’s market action click here.
Tune into Benzinga’s pre-market info show with Dennis Dick and Joel Elconin here.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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