Futures on the Dow are pointed roughly 59 points higher
Stock futures are eyeing muted gains this morning, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) set for a quiet 59-point pop. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) are looking to take back last night's losses, as reopening stocks strengthen and bond yields stabilize. The 10-year Treasury yield topped 1.3%, bolstered by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's comments before Senate noting inflation was much higher than expected. A better-than-anticipated 0.6% rise in retail and food service sales last month is also creating some tailwinds this morning, with the number handily topping the 0.4% decline expected by economists.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- The blue-chip tech stock that looks primed for a bounce.
- Why bulls should bet big on the Zoom stock dip.
- Plus, TAP reintroduces dividends; BNTX sees positive vaccine update; and MRNA joins the S&P 500.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
- The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw more than 1.8 million call contracts traded on Thursday, compared to over 1 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio rose to 0.59 and the 21-day moving average rose to 0.47.
- The shares of Molson Coors Beverage Co (NYSE:TAP) are up 1.9%, after the company said it would begin paying quarterly dividends again, after suspending dividend payments last May, as it dealt with the pandemic. The beer maker will begin with a scheduled payout of 34 cents per share on Sept. 17 to shareholders of record as of Aug. 30. TAP is up 12.9% in 2021.
- BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:BNTX) is up 1.9% in electronic trading, following news that its mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccine was able to create 10 times more antibodies than China's inactivated virus-based jab, Sinovac, per a study published by a medical journal. BNTX is up an impressive 171.2% this year alone.
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An announcement of the drugmaker Moderna Inc's (NASDAQ:MRNA) inclusion in the S&P 500, starting July 21, is causing shares to surge in pre-market trading -- up 7.3% at last check. The stock will replace Alexion Pharmaceuticals, which has just been acquired by AstraZenica (AZN). MRNA is up an impressive 223.7% in the past 12 months.
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The week will wrap up with data on business inventories and the consumer sentiment index.
Asian Markets Eye BoJ Monetary Update
Markets in Asia were mostly lower today, with the exception of Hong Kong's Hang Seng, which ended with a mild 0.03% pop. The Bank of Japan (BoJ) announced that it will hold steady on its monetary policy, and lowered its gross domestic product (GDP) forecast to a 3.8% expansion for 2021 from the previous 4%. To follow, Japan's Nikkei ended the day with a 1% loss, while China's Shanghai Composite shed 0.7%, and the South Korean Kospi fell 0.3%.
In Europe, investors are eyeing the continued surge of Covid-19 cases due to the delta variant, as well as earnings. Euro zone consumer prices rose 1.9% in June compared to May’s 2% climb, revealing an inflation slow-down. At last check, London's FTSE 100 is up 0.03%, the French CAC 40 is down 0.6%, and the German DAX is 0.2% lower.