Futures Pointing To Continued Strength On Wall Street

[ADVFN]( [WorldDaily Markets Bulletin]( [Daily world financial news]( [Tuesday, 25 August 2020 14:23:50]( [Monitor]( [Quote]( [Charts]( [News]( [Toplists]( [Boards]( --------------------------------------------------------------- US Market Bitcoin [Bitcoin]( DAX [DAX]( Dow Jones [Dow Jones]( Nasdaq [Nasdaq]( The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Tuesday, with stocks likely to extend the upward move seen in the previous session. Traders may continue to react positively to upbeat news regarding a potential coronavirus treatment and vaccine, which helped drive stocks higher on Monday. News that U.S. and Chinese officials held a phone call yesterday to discuss the implementation of the Phase 1 trade agreement may also ease concerns about recent tensions between Washington and Beijing. A statement from the U.S. Trade Representative said both sides see progress and are committed to taking the steps necessary to ensure the success of the agreement. Trading may also be impact by reaction to news of a major shakeup in the thirty Dow components, with the changes due to take effect before the start of trading next Monday. S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Salesforce.com (CRM) will replace Exxon Mobil (XOM), Amgen (AMGN) will replace Pfizer (PFE), and Honeywell (HON) will replace Raytheon (RTX). The changes to the Dow components come as Apple?s (APPL) upcoming 4-for-1 stock split will reduce the index's weight in the information technology sector. Stocks moved significantly higher over the course of the trading session on Monday, adding to the gains posted last week. With the upward move, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached new record closing highs, while the Dow ended the session at its best closing level in six months. Going into the close of trading, the Dow and the S&P 500 reached new highs for the session. The Dow surged up 378.13 points or 1.4 percent to 28,308.46, the Nasdaq advanced 67.92 points or 0.6 percent to 11,379.72 and the S&P 500 jumped 34.12 points or 1 percent to 3,431.28. The strength on Wall Street came following upbeat news on the coronavirus front, with companies that have been hit hardest by the pandemic, like cruise operators and airlines, helping lead the markets higher. The Food and Drug Administration announced Sunday that it has issued an emergency use authorization for investigational convalescent plasma for the treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalized patients. The FDA concluded convalescent plasma may be effective in treating COVID-19 and that the known and potential benefits of the product outweigh the known and potential risks. "I am committed to releasing safe and potentially helpful treatments for COVID-19 as quickly as possible in order to save lives, said FDA Commissioner Dr. Stephen Hahn. He added, "The data from studies conducted this year shows that plasma from patients who've recovered from COVID-19 has the potential to help treat those who are suffering from the effects of getting this terrible virus." Adding to the positive sentiment, a report from the Financial Times said the Trump administration is considering fast-tracking an experimental coronavirus vaccine from the U.K. for use in America ahead of the presidential election. Citing three people briefed on the plan, the FT said one option being explored to speed up the availability of a vaccine would involve the FDA awarding emergency use authorization in October to a vaccine being developed in a partnership between AstraZeneca (AZN) and Oxford University. An advance by shares of Apple (AAPL) also contributed to continued strength among tech stocks, as Monday marked the record date for the tech giant's recently announced 4-for-1 stock split. Airline stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading session, driving the NYSE Arca Airline Index up by 7.3 percent. With the jump, the index ended the session at its best closing level in two months. Substantial strength was also visible among energy stocks, which benefited from optimism about the outlook for demand and two tropical storms headed toward the Gulf Coast forcing a shutdown in oil production. Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index soared by 4.8 percent, the NYSE Arca Oil Index jumped by 2.8 percent and the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index surged up by 2.1 percent. Banking stocks also showed a significant move to the upside on the day, resulting in a 3.6 percent spike by the KBW Bank Index. Computer hardware, chemical, and steel stocks also saw considerable strength, while biotechnology stocks were among the few groups to buck the uptrend. --------------------------------------------------------------- [Man Who Predicted 2020 Gold Rally Issues New Call]( Gold expert explains why massive shift happening right now in the financial markets could create biggest opportunity in last 100 years. [Click here to know more.]( --------------------------------------------------------------- U.S. Economic Reports CADUSD [CADUSD]( Oil [Oil]( Gold [Gold]( EURUSD [EURUSD]( Standard & Poor?s is scheduled to release its report on home prices in major metropolitan areas in the month of June at 9 am ET. At 10 am ET, the Conference Board is due to release its report on consumer confidence in the month of August. The consumer confidence index is expected to inch up to 93.0 in August from 92.6 in July. The Commerce Department is also scheduled to release its report on new home sales in the month of July at 10 am ET. Economists expect new home sales to increase by 1.3 percent. At 1 pm ET, the Treasury Department is due to announce the results of this month?s auction of $50 billion worth of two-year notes. San Francisco Federal Reserve President Mary Daly is scheduled to moderate a panel on "Under the Magnifying Glass: Inequity and COVID-19" at the Rotary Club of Oakland at 3:25 pm ET. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Stocks in Focus Shares of J.M. Smucker (SJM) are moving significantly higher in pre-market trading after the food producer reported better than expected fiscal first quarter results and raised its full-year guidance. Medical device maker Medtronic (MDT) is also likely to see initial strength after reporting fiscal first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines. On the other hand, shares of Best Buy (BBY) may come under pressure after the consumer electronics retailer reported second quarter results that beat estimates but warned of slower sales growth. Tiffany (TIF) is also seeing pre-market weakness after Reuters reported the jeweler and French luxury goods giant LVMH have given themselves another three months to complete their $16.2 billion tie-up. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Europe European stocks have risen on Tuesday, with impressive German data, positive news on the coronavirus front and signs of progress in U.S.-China trade negotiations boosting sentiment. German GDP fell 9.7 percent sequentially in the second quarter after shrinking 2 percent in the first quarter, data from Destatits showed today. The rate was revised from -10.1 percent estimated on July 30. Nonetheless, the quarterly decline was much larger than during the financial and economic crisis of 2008/2009 and the sharpest since quarterly GDP calculations started in 1970. Meanwhile, German business confidence improved in August, survey data from ifo Institute revealed. The business confidence index rose to 92.6 in August from 90.4 in July. This was the fourth consecutive rise and above economists' forecast of 92.2. U.S. biotechnology company Moderna, Inc. said it has concluded advanced exploratory talks to provide 80 million doses of its experimental coronavirus shot to the European Union. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a statement that the U.S. and China are seeing progress and are committed to taking steps to ensure the success of their Phase 1 trade deal. While the French CAC 40 Index has jumped by 1 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.8 percent and the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent. Furniture retailer DFS Furniture has moved sharply higher. The company said its performance over the last six weeks was significantly above its initial expectations. Industrial software provider Aveva Group has also surged after it announced a deal to buy SoftBank-backed peer OSIsoft for an enterprise value of $5 billion. LVMH has also risen. Reuters reported source that the French luxury goods giant and U.S. jeweler Tiffany have extended by three months the deadline to complete their $16.2 billion deal. On the other hand, marine service provider James Fisher & Sons has slumped after reporting weak first-half results and cutting its interim dividend. EssilorLuxottica has also fallen. The company said the Dutch District Court has dismissed its demands for disclosure of information from both HAL and GrandVision on how GrandVision conducted business during Covid-19. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Asia USDCAD [USDCAD]( USDEUR [USDEUR]( USDGBP [USDGBP]( USDJPY [USDJPY]( Asian stocks rose broadly on Tuesday after U.S. stocks rallied overnight amid positive news on the coronavirus front and signs of progress in U.S.-China trade negotiations. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a statement that the U.S. and China are seeing progress and are committed to taking steps to ensure the success of their Phase 1 trade deal. Chinese shares closed lower, bucking the regional trend. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dropped 12.06 points, or 0.4 percent, to 3,373.58, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index edged down 65.36 points, or 0.3 percent, to 25,486.22. Japanese shares hit a fresh six-month high amid hopes for successful development of coronavirus vaccines and signs of a thaw in U.S.-China tensions. The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 311.26 points, or 1.4 percent, to 23,296.77, its highest close since February 21. The broader Topix closed 1.1 percent higher at 1,625.23. Airlines and steelmakers led the surge as a sharp drop in the number of daily coronavirus cases in Tokyo to below 100 spurred bets of a quicker economic recovery from the pandemic. Nippon Steel, Kobe Steel, Japan Airlines and ANA Holdings soared 4-7 percent. Market heavyweight SoftBank Group jumped 2.4 percent and Fast Retailing added 2.3 percent. Exporters Panasonic, Honda Motor and Canon gained 2-4 percent on a weaker yen. Banks Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial jumped around 3 percent each. Takeda Pharmaceuticals edged up slightly after it agreed to divest its unit Takeda Consumer Healthcare Co. Ltd. to Blackstone Group Inc. for 242 billion yen. Australian markets extended gains from the previous session, though stocks ended off their day's highs after the state of Victoria recorded 148 new cases of coronavirus overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index ended up 31.80 points, or 0.5 percent, at 6,161.40, while the broader All Ordinaries Index rose 31.70 points, or half a percent, to 6,332. The big four banks surged 2-4 percent. Tech stocks such as Appen and Widetech Global rose over 2 percent after the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite hit a record closing high overnight. Afterpau shares jumped 11.8 percent. Oil & gas producer Oil Search rose 0.7 percent despite the company reporting an 85 percent plunge in first-half profit. Westfield shopping centres operator Scentre Group soared 4.5 percent after declaring its half-year results. Gold miners Evolution and Newcrest Mining fell over 2 percent after safe-haven gold priced declined overnight. Seoul stocks rose for a third consecutive session amid fresh hopes for a coronavirus vaccine and signs of a slowdown in new infection cases. South Korea reported 280 new Covid-19 cases today, staying below 300 for the second consecutive day. The benchmark Kospi surged up 36.90 points, or 1.6 percent, to 2,366.73. In economic news, South Korean consumer confidence improved for the fourth straight month in August, survey results from Bank of Korea showed. The consumer confidence index rose to 88.2 in August from 84.2 in July. --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- Commodities Crude oil futures are climbing $0.28 to $42.90 a barrel after rising $0.28 to $42.62 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after falling $7.80 to $1,939.20 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are sliding $8.80 to $1,930.40 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 106.44 yen compared to the 105.98 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1807 compared to yesterday?s $1.1788. --------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this news bulletin or edit your mailing list settings click [here](. Registered Office/Accounts Dept: Suite 27, Essex Technology Centre, The Gable, Fyfield Road, Ongar, CM5 0GA. Customer Support +1 888-992-3836. Company registered in England and Wales: Number 2374988 VAT No. GB 549 2130 49