Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Bounce Back as Oil Rises

Dow Jones Industrial Average ​​(DJIA) futures are signaling a healthy start, trading comfortably above fair value and set to recover some of Wednesday's sell-off. Rising oil prices are boosting stocks this morning, with the June contract for crude oil last seen 1.3% higher at $46.82 per barrel -- and flirting with year-to-date highs -- thanks to a surprise fall in U.S. inventories. In addition, the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicted a "dramatic reduction" in global oil supplies in the second half of the year. Meanwhile, traders are also eyeing an unexpected jump in weekly jobless claims, which surged to their loftiest level in 14 months.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• Is this outperforming gold ETF attracting bearish attention in the options pits?
• Despite yesterday's retail slump, bulls placed some big bets on Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT).
• The big-time endorsement that propelled Amazon.com, Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) to yet another record high.
• Plus... Dovish talks boost Japan, Monsanto pops on M&A chatter, and Google looks to echo Amazon.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are nearly 79 points above fair value.

5 Things You Need to Know Today
 

1. Japan outperformed on a weaker yen and dovish central bank talk.
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 597,379 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to 476,924 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio dropped to 0.80, while the 21-day moving average sat put at 0.73.
3. Agricultural concern Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) is 17% higher in pre-market trading on reports that German chemical companies Bayer and BASF are still considering takeover bids for the company. Bloomberg reported earlier this year that MON was in talks with both companies, exploring a range of possible deals.
4. After reporting first-quarter earnings and revenue short of analysts' expectations, retailer Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS) is pointed 6.3% lower. The shares dropped to a seven-year low in Wednesday's session, and are on pace to tap a new low today.
5. Google parent Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is reportedly developing a device to compete against Amazon.com, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Echo. The project is known internally as "Chirp," and sources estimate that it will likely launch some time later this year.

Earnings and Economic Data

Data due Thursday includes import and export prices. Nordstrom (JWN), NVIDIA (NVDA), Shake Shack (SHAK), and Sunrun (RUN) will step up to the earnings mic. To see what else is coming up on this week's schedule, click here. 

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