Futures Pointing To Continued Strength On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Monday, with stocks likely to extend the strong upward move seen over the two previous sessions.

Technology stocks may continue to lead the way higher after turning in some of the market’s best performances last Thursday and Friday.

Shares of Oracle (ORCL) are surging by 2.6 percent in pre-market trading after Wells Fargo reiterated its Overweight rating on the software giant’s stock.

AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA) is also likely to see further upside after a report from Reuters said the company has told Chinese clients it aims to start shipping its second-most powerful AI chips to China before the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, with a lack of major U.S. economic data likely to keep some traders on the sidelines.

Some traders may also be away from their desks as they look to get a head start on the Christmas Day holiday on Thursday.

Reports on durable goods orders, third quarter GDP, industrial production and consumer confidence are still likely to attract attention on Tuesday.

Stocks showed a strong move to the upside during trading on Friday, extending the significant rebound seen over the course of Thursday’s session. With the upward move, the major averages further offset the weakness seen earlier in the week.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq reached new highs for the session going into the end of the day, closing up 301.26 points or 1.3 percent at 23,307.62. The S&P 500 also jumped 59.74 points or 0.9 percent to 6,834.50, while the narrower Dow rose 183.04 points or 0.4 percent to 48,134.89.

With the strong upward move, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 turned positive for the week. The Nasdaq climbed by 0.5 percent and the S&P 500 inched up by 0.1 percent, although the Dow slid by 0.7 percent.

The continued strength on Wall Street came amid a sharp increase by shares of Oracle, with the software giant spiking by 6.6 percent.

Oracle surged after a memo from TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said the company has agreed to sell its U.S. operations to a joint venture that includes Oracle and private equity firm Silver Lake.

Shares of Micron Technology also showed another strong move to the upside after helping lead the markets higher on Thursday on better than expected quarterly results and blowout guidance.

Nvidia also turned a strong performance on the day, with the AI darling and market leader jumping by 3.9 percent.

The advance by Nvidia came after a report from Reuters said the Trump administration has launched a review that could result in the first shipments of the company’s second-most powerful AI chips to China.

In U.S. economic news, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing a modest increase by existing home sales in the U.S. in the month of November.

NAR said existing home sales rose by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.13 million in November after jumping by 1.5 percent to an upwardly revised rate of 4.10 million in October.

Economists had expected existing home sales to shoot up by 1.2 percent to an annual rate of 4.15 million from the 4.10 million originally reported for the previous month.

A separate report released by the University of Michigan showed consumer sentiment in the U.S. rebounded by less than previously estimates in the month of December.

The University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index for December was downwardly revised to 52.9 from a preliminary reading of 53.3. Economists had expected the index to be upwardly revised to 53.4.

Despite the downward revision, the index is still above the November reading of 51.0, which marked its lowest level since hitting a record low of 50.0 in June 2022.

Biotechnology stocks turned in some of the market’s best performances on the day, with the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index surging by 3.1 percent.

Semiconductor and networking stocks also extended the strong upward moves seen on Thursday, contributing to the jump by the tech-heavy Nasdaq.

Gold stocks also saw considerable strength amid an increase by the price of the precious metal, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 2.7 percent.

Computer hardware, airline and financial stocks also showed notable moves to the upside, while some weakness was visible among utilities and housing stocks.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are surging $1.28 to $57.80 a barrel after climbing $0.52 to $56.52 barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after rising $22.80 to $4,387.30 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are jumping $69.50 to $4,456.80 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 157.04 yen versus the 157.75 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1752 compared to last Friday’s $1.1708.

Asia

Asian markets closed with strong gains on Monday, buoyed by Wall Street’s tech-led rally on Friday. Sentiment was also boosted by the People’s Bank of China keeping its one-year and five-year Loan Prime Rate at record lows for the seventh consecutive month.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed percent to finish trading at 3,917.36, versus the previous close of 3890.45. The day’s trading ranged between 3,900.52 and 3,920.01.

The Japanese benchmark Nikkei 225 Index jumped 1.8 percent to close trading at 50,420.50. The day’s trading range was between 50,252.5 and 50,621.

Resonac Holdings and SUMCO Corp. both surged more than 8 percent. Mitsui Mining and Smelting Co. as well as Sumitomo Electric Industries gained more than 7 percent. Fujikura also gained a little less than 7 percent.

Nitori Holdings Co. and Central Japan Railway Co. both declined more than 4 percent. Aeon, Nintendo, NH Foods, all lost more than 3 percent.

The Korean Stock Exchange’s Kospi Index surged 2.1 percent to close trading at 4,105.93. The day’s trading range was between 4,083.13 and 4,105.93.

The Hang Seng Index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange added 0.4 percent from the previous close to finish trading at 25,801.77. The day’s trading range was between a high of 25,859.61 and a low of 25,671.33.

Australia’s S&P/ASX200 Index closed trading at 8,699.90, gaining 0.9 percent from the previous close of 8,621.40. The day’s trading range was between 8,621.40 and 8,709.20.

Nick Scali topped gains with a surge of 9.9 percent followed by Nexgen Energy (Canada) that added 8.6 percent. Aerospace business DroneShield, West African Resources, as well as Silex Systems rallied more than 7 percent.

Wisetech Global lost 4.2 percent. Lovisa Holdings as well as Charter Hall Group erased more than 2 percent. GOG Partners as well as Tuas also lost close to 2 percent.

The NZX 50 Index of the New Zealand Stock Exchange jumped 1.3 percent to close trading at 13,508.30, versus the previous close of 13,333.40. The day’s trading ranged between 13,333.40 and 13,508.30, marking the best intra-day gain since August.

A2 Milk topped with gains of 3.7 percent. Summerset Group, Ryman Healthcare, Fletcher Building, all gained more than 3 percent.

KMD Brands topped losses with a decline of 3.6 percent followed by Synlait Milk that lost 1.6 percent. Fonterra Shareholders Fund as well as Freightways both declined close to a percent.

Europe

The major European markets were subdued on Monday amid thin volumes, with investors somewhat reluctant to make big moves ahead of upcoming Christmas holidays.

The German market will have a full session on Tuesday and then remain closed for rest of the week. The U.K. and French markets will have full sessions today and tomorrow. They will open for trading for half a day on Wednesday and then remain closed on Thursday and Friday. The Swiss market will remain closed Wednesday through Friday this week.

Easing concerns about AI spending and tech valuation and optimism about Fed interest rate cuts next year aided sentiment, while geopolitical concerns amid tensions in Venezuela and negotiations in Ukraine rendered the mood a bit cautious.

While the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index are both down by 0.5 percent.

Mining stocks moved higher in the London market. Endeavour Mining gained about 2.5 percent, Fresnillo climbed 2.4 percent, while Rio Tinto and Antofagasta posted modest gains.

Polar Capital Technology Trust gained nearly 1 percent, while Halma, Metlen Energy & Metals and Bunzl posted modest gains.

Among the losers, DCC was down 3.9 percent, Diageo drifted down 2.9 percent and WPP was down 2.4 percent, while Coca-Cola Europacific Partners lost 2.1 percent.

Croda International, Imperial Brands, Convatec Group, Pearson, Marks & Spencer and United Utilities also shed ground.

In the German market, E.ON, Beiersdorf, Symrise, Vonovia, Brenntag and RWE lost 1 to 1.5 percent.

Infineon gained nearly 2.5 percent. Adidas, Siemens, Volkswagen and Deutsche Bank psted modest gains.

In the French market, Pernod Ricard drifted lower by about 2.2 percent. Stellantis, Edenred, Danone, Safran and Eurofins Scientific lost 1 to 2 percent.

Kering climbed nearly 1 percent. Schneider Electric, Hermes International, Legrand and STMicroelectronics edged up marginally.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK economy registered a meager growth as initially estimated in the third quarter, growing by unrevised 0.1 percent sequentially, following the second quarter’s 0.2 percent expansion.

The growth was driven by increases in services and construction, while industrial output contracted.

The dominant service sector advanced 0.2 percent, following a growth of 0.3 percent a quarter ago. Construction output also expanded 0.2 percent after rising 1.2 percent in the preceding period.

Industrial production fell 0.3 percent but slower than a 0.7 percent fall in the previous quarter. The monthly fall was mainly because of a drop of 0.8 percent in manufacturing and a 0.4 percent fall in mining and quarrying.

On a yearly basis, GDP expanded 1.3 percent in the third quarter, unchanged from the initial estimate.

U.S. Economic News

The Treasury Department is scheduled to announce the results of this month’s auction of $69 billion worth of two-year notes at 1 pm ET.