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Fed Chair Janet Yellen continues her congressional testimony this morning
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:DJI) is signaling a flat open, following Tuesday's record-setting session. On the economic front, traders continue to process Fed Chair Janet Yellen's dovish remarks before Congress, and look forward to her second day of testimony. Moving along to earnings, Lowe's Companies, Inc.
(NYSE:LOW) is poised to follow the lead of sector peer Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD), up 2% premarket after its latest earnings report.
And now, on to the numbers...
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) are about 5 points above fair value.
Market Statistics
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 1.05 million call contracts traded on Tuesday, compared to 599,174 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.57, while the 21-day moving average slipped to 0.63.
Currencies and Commodities
- The U.S. dollar index is off 0.2% at 94.30.
- Crude oil has tacked on 0.2% to trade at $49.39 per barrel.
- Gold is up 1% at $1,208.70 per ounce.
Earnings and Economic Data
New home sales and crude inventories headline today's docket, while Fed Chair Janet Yellen concludes her two-day tour of Capitol Hill by addressing the House Financial Services Committee. Cablevision (CVC), Campbell Soup (CPB), Chesapeake Energy (CHK), SodaStream (SODA), Dollar Tree (DLTR), Gulfport Energy (GPOR), Salesforce.com (CRM), Sturm Ruger (RGR), Target (TGT) and Transocean (RIG) will report earnings. To see what else is coming up on this week's agenda, click here.
Overseas Trading
Asian markets were mixed, despite yesterday's dovish comments from Yellen and a resolution on Greece's bailout extension. China's Shanghai Composite dropped 0.5%, as the flash HSBC purchasing managers index (PMI) topped expectations, but revealed underlying weakness in exports. Japan's Nikkei dipped 0.1% on a stronger yen, pulling back slightly from the previous session's highs. On the flip side, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi added 0.1% and 0.7%, respectively -- with the former helped by a better-than-expected fourth-quarter gross domestic product (GDP).
European stocks are sitting slightly below the flatline at midday, as investors digest yesterday's Greek bailout news and look ahead to Yellen's second day on Capitol Hill. At last check, London's FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 are both down 0.3%, while the German DAX is fractionally lower.
Unusual Put and Call Activity:
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