In a notable shift on Wall Street, futures pointed moderately higher ahead of the bell on Monday, as traders absorbed the significant news that President Joe Biden has decided not to seek re-election. This pivotal moment has instigated a cautious optimism amongst investors, who are also preparing for an intense week filled with corporate earnings reports. In the early futures markets, the S&P 500 has seen an increase of 0.5%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq has surged by 0.9%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average has also nudged upwards by 0.2%, signaling a positive outlook at the opening bell. A plethora of corporate giants is set to reveal their earnings later this week, adding to the excitement and anticipation in the markets. Notable companies that investors will be watching include Tesla, Alphabet, IBM, AT&T, Comcast, Texas Instruments, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Spotify, General Motors, Ford, AbbVie, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Visa, Colgate-Palmolive, Coca-Cola, Lockheed Martin, and United Parcel Service, among numerous others. However, not all news was sunny in the market; Truist Financial experienced a pre-bell dip of 2.4%, despite the company surpassing earnings forecasts.
Unfortunately for Truist, revenue expectations fell short, and they also revealed plans for a stock buyback program, which may influence investor sentiment moving forward. Across different markets, Asian exchanges largely traded lower overnight, impacted by a downturn in technology shares. However, Hong Kong's exchanges saw a slight uptick after the People's Bank of China announced a small rate cut of 0.1% on short-term reverse repos, along with adjustments on one-year and five-year loans. In Europe, stock markets tracked positively, showing solid gains as the midday session unfolded.
The strength in European markets contrasted with the mixed performance observed in Asian markets. Earnings reports are also anticipated from Verizon Communications, amongst a variety of other companies, as the earnings season progresses at a frenetic pace. On the economic front, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index for June is scheduled for release at 8:30 am ET, which may provide insights into the economic health of the nation moving forward. In premarket trading, notable activity includes Bitcoin, which was trading at an impressive $67,451.
In the commodities sector, West Texas Intermediate crude oil has dipped to $78.42, while the yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries sits at 4.22%. Additionally, spot gold is trading at $2,407 per ounce, highlighting the varied dynamics at play in these markets as they react to a flurry of news and earnings announcements..