Futures on the Dow and S&P 500 are both eyeing a muted start this morning
Stock futures are coming back from the long holiday weekend and Friday's record-setting session on a quiet note, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) pointed marginally lower, and futures on the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) eyeing a small pop. Energy stocks are in the spotlight this morning, enjoying a surge after West Texas Intermediate crude jumped to a six-year high, following the postponement of a crisis meeting between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+). The delay came after the United Arab Emirates rejected plans to increase oil production by nearly 2 million barrels per day, starting in August.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Apple's latest involvement in the pot sector.
- Breaking down last week's big vaccine update.
- Plus, 2 Dow stocks analysts are talking about; and why newly public DIDI is sinking.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 2.1 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 1.1 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.51 and the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.43.
- Credit Suisse just downgraded blue-chip stock 3M Co (NYSE:MMM) to "neutral" from "outperform" but raised its price target to $212 from $210, noting headwinds from legal issues the company is facing. MMM is down 0.7% in response, with a recent rally running out of steam at the $200 level. Year-to-date, the stock is up 14%.
- Fellow Dow-member, American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), on the other hand, received an upgrade to "buy" from "neutral" from Goldman Sachs. The analyst cited a pop in consumer spending amid the economic recovery, and set its price target at $225 -- a 33% premium to Friday's close. The stock is up 2.5% ahead of the bell, and looks to be eyeing a fresh record high right out of the gate.
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The shares of newly public DiDi Global Inc (NYSE:DIDI) are off 20.9% in electronic trading, following news that Chinese regulators launched a cybersecurity probe on the ride share company last Friday. The equity is set to open below its initial public offering (IPO) price of $14 for the first time since going public on Wednesday, June 30.
- The economic calendar today will feature the final Markit services purchasing managers' index (PMI) and the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) services index.
Global Oil Surge Leaves Asian Markets Mixed
Markets in Asia were mixed today, after oil prices surged internationally, and major Chinese tech stocks were on watch following cybersecurity reviews from regulators. The South Korean Kospi led the gainers with a 0.4% pop, while Japan's Nikkei followed behind with a 0.2% win, as Tokyo gears up for the Olympics. Elsewhere, Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.3%, and China's Shanghai Composite ended with a 0.1% loss.
Stocks are lower in Europe midday, despite news that euro zone retail sales rose to a better-than-expected 4.6% for the month of May. London's FTSE 100 is down 0.2% at last check, while the French CAC 40 has shed 0.3%. Meanwhile, the German DAX is down 0.3%, after industrial orders dropped 3.7% in May -- the fastest pandemic-era decline yet and much worse than analysts' expectations of a 1% rise. Plus, German economic sentiment fell to 63.3 in July from 79.8 in June, according to the ZEW survey.