Via @BrianSozzi
Ahead of Facebook (FB) CEO Mark Zuckerberg's two-day testimony on Tuesday, the social media giant's stock has rallied about 3% off its March 27 lows. The stock has lagged the Nasdaq Composite since mid-January.Friday's big down session in the markets brought the S&P 500 below its key 200-day moving average.Bank stocks remain stuck in the mud ahead of Action Alerts Plus holding JPMorgan & Chase's (JPM) first-quarter earnings on Friday. The SPDR S&P Bank ETF (KBE) has lost about 0.7% this year despite the specter of higher interest rates from the Fed, which is theoretically good for bank profit margins.U.S. futures were rebounding, Monday, April 9 ahead of a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday and U.S. inflation data on Wednesday.
Futures were firmly in the green at 7:30am ET, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average expected to add 197 points when markets open. S&P 500 mini futures were up 0.48% and Nasdaq futures gained 0.66%.
On Friday, the Dow shed 2.35% to move into correction territory with a more than 550-point loss. It was the worst day in two weeks for the blue-chip index. The S&P 500 fell 2.2% and the Nasdaq Composite handed over 2.28%. Losses were amplified in late-session trading after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the Fed is intent on continuing its trajectory of gradual rate hikes.
General Motor Co. (GM) shares climbed 2.31% in premarket trading Monday after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock to 'Overweight' from 'Equalweight' with a price target of $48, this is up from a previous target of $45. GM shares fell 0.84% on Friday to close at $37.68.
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) was marked 3.07% higher in premarket trading, after it reported upbeat results that showed longer survival rates of non-small cell lung cancer using its drug Keytruda.
Viacom Inc. (VIAB) rose 1.91% in premarket trading ahead of Monday's bell on reports that it asked CBS Corp. (CBS) to raised its takeover bid by $2.8 billion. Reuters reported that Viacom has asked for 0.68 CBS shares for each Viacom share, compared with the previous offer of 0.55 CBS shares. CBS shares closed at $52.84 on Friday.
Facebook Inc. (FB) shares gained 0.59% in premarket trading, after falling 1.34% on Friday to close at $157.20. The social network on Monday will begin sending notices to the 87 million users who may have had their data shared with Cambridge Analytica. In addition, all 2.2 billion Facebook users will receive a notice titled " Protecting Your Information" with a link to see what apps they use and what information they have shared with those apps, the Associated Press reported. CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday will testify in front of Congress and the Senate on Wednesday. He is due to meet some of U.S. lawmakers on Monday.
Nasdaq-listed Avexis Inc. (AVXS) shares surged 85.59% in premarket trading after Novartis International AG (NVS) said it would buy the company in a $8.7 billion deal. Novartis has agreed to pay $218 per AveXis share, a more than 80% premium to the shares closing price of $115.91 on Friday. The deal has unanimously approved by the Boards of both companies. Bannockburn, Illinois-based AveXis is a specialist in spinal muscular atrophy and is in clinical trials for the first-ever one-time gene replacement therapy for the mostly fatal childhood disease.
Deutsche Bank AG (DB) shares gained 2.96% over their Friday close on Monday to change hands at ?,?11.75 after the German lender late Sunday named Christian Sewing as its new CEO, replacing embattled John Cryan with immediate effect. Sewing, formerly at co-president at the Frankfurt-based lender, overseeing private and commercial bank. Deutsche Bank shares have lost more than 26% since the beginning over the year. Sewing on Monday pointed to further cuts at the investment bank. The lender's American Depository Receipts surged 3.39% in premarket.
European markets pared earlier gains in early afternoon trading, with London's FTSE 100 was 0.13% lower at 7,174, France's Cac 40 gained 0.2% to 5,268 and the Dax was climbed 0.51% to 12,303.
The FTSE 100 was being dragged down by Evraz plc a Russian steel making and mining company, which was down 13.83% at 388.1 pence. Russian assets tumbled on Monday after President Donald Trump's administration imposed sanctions against seven Russian business people and the companies they control. Russian Moex index fell 8.7% and the rouble dropped 2.5% against the dollar.
WPP plc (WPP) shares were up 1.46% in London, changing hands at 1,176 pence, putting it close to the top of the FTSE 100, on reports that potential successors have been identified to take over from long-serving CEO Sir Martin Sorrell after last week the board said it was investigating him for misconduct. London's Times newspaper reported that internal candidates have attended board meeting as part of succession planning and are in contentions along a "constantly refined list of external candidates."
Markets around the globe last week were tumultuous after both China and the U.S. proposed tariffs on imported goods as investors weigh whether the countries will come to the table to negotiate an end to the spat.
President Trump on Sunday tweeted that "China will take down its Trade Barriers because it is the right thing to do," just days before President Xi Jinping gives a keynote speech at the Boao Forum for Asia on Tuesday. Investors will be looking for Xi to outline new economic reforms and measures to open markets.
President Xi and I will always be friends, no matter what happens with our dispute on trade. China will take down its Trade Barriers because it is the right thing to do. Taxes will become Reciprocal & a deal will be made on Intellectual Property. Great future for both countries!
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)April 8, 2018Asian markets were mixed on Monday. China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.5% on Monday holidays on Thursday and Friday saw the market closed. Japan's Nikkei gained 0.51% and the Topix was up 0.38%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 1.15% on Monday, while South Korea's Kospi was up 0.6%.
United Co. Rusal dropped 50% in Hong Kong on Monday after the U.S. imposed sanctions on the aluminium producer's owner Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska. Rusal is the biggest producer of aluminium outside China. The U.S. on Friday imposed sanctions on 12 Russian companies, including Rusal and seven other Deripaska-linked firms. Deripaska is accused of benefiting from the Putin regime and "playing a key role in advancing malign activities." Rusal said it is looking at the situation with its legal advisers.
Investor worries eased sending gold down 0.11% to $1,334.51 an ounce. Brent Crude was up 0.46% to $67.46 a barrel and WTI Crude was up 0.42% to $62.32 a barrel.