December S&P 500 E-Mini futures are up +0.12%, and Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures are up +0.23%, pointing to a higher open on Wall Street as investors await the Federal Reserve’s final monetary policy meeting of the year with another rate cut expected.
Wall Street ended Friday in the green, with Ulta Beauty surging over +12% and chip stocks like Micron Technology rising more than +4%. Warner Bros. Discovery climbed over +6% after Netflix agreed to acquire the company. DocuSign slumped over -7% after issuing soft Q4 revenue guidance.
U.S. Department of Commerce data showed core PCE price index rose +0.2% m/m and +2.8% y/y in September. U.S. personal spending rose +0.3% m/m and personal income grew +0.4% m/m. U.S. consumer sentiment index rose to 53.3 in December. U.S. consumer credit rose by $9.18 billion in October.
Federal Reserve expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points at this week’s meeting. Chair Jerome Powell’s remarks will be scrutinized for clues on future rate cuts. U.S. JOLTs Job Openings and jobless claims data will provide insight into the labor market. Several major companies are set to release quarterly results.
Euro Stoxx 50 Index is up +0.02% with defense stocks gaining ground. Germany’s industrial production rose +1.8% m/m in October. Eurozone’s Sentix Investor Confidence Index came in at -6.2 in December. Asian stock markets settled in the green with China’s Shanghai Composite Index closing up +0.54% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Index closing up +0.18%. Goldman Sachs noted a positive regulatory shift encouraging institutional investment in the equity market. China plans to introduce more supportive policies next year to boost domestic demand. Baidu rose over 3% in Hong Kong after considering a spinoff of its AI chip unit. Chinese exports in November exceeded expectations.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index rose on Monday, led by real estate and industrial stocks. Revised data showed Japan’s economy contracted more than expected in Q3. China-Japan tensions escalate over fighter jet incident. Japan’s real wages fell for the 10th consecutive month in October. BOJ Governor speech awaited.
Tesla dropped over 1% pre-market after a downgrade by Morgan Stanley. Confluent surged over 28% on news of potential IBM acquisition. Carvana climbed over 8% after being added to the S&P 500 index. Marvell Technology slumped over 6% after not being included in the S&P 500 index.
Today’s U.S. earnings spotlight includes Toll Brothers, Phreesia, Compass Minerals, Mama’s Creations, Ooma Inc, and Elauwit Connection. President Trump’s comments on Netflix/Warner Bros. Discovery deal affect pre-market trading. Benchmark downgrades Marvell Technology. Check out more pre-market stock movers.
Read more at Yahoo Finance: Stocks Set to Open Higher as Investors Await Fed Meeting