Ahead of the Bell: Dow futures are trading down 14 points and S&P futures are trading down 2 points. U.S. stock-index futures pointed to a weaker open today, after the S&P 500 Index closed at an all- time high, as investors awaited jobless-claims data and earnings from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to Citigroup Inc. Thus far, 31 S&P 500 companies have reported earnings so far and, of these, around 20 have beaten the Street's consensus revenue estimates, with a similar number beating earnings estimates. On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a $1.1 trillion spending bill, squashing the threat of a government shutdown and potentially ending four years of crisis-driven budgeting.
- On the economic calendar today,consumer price index for December (+0.3% expected) and jobless claims for the week ended 1/11 (327K expected) will be released before the market opens. The Philadelphia Fed survey (8.7 expected) and the housing market index for January (57.5 expected) will be released after the market opens.
- Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke will speak on challenges facing central banks, in Washington at 11:10 AM ET.
- The dollar is up against the euro and the British pound and down against the Japanese yen. Gold is trading at $1,238. Crude oil is currently trading at $94 a barrel.
- Yesterday, stocks rose, with the S&P 500 Index erasing a loss for 2014 to close at a record, as the World Bank lifted its global growth forecast and Bank of America’s profit spurred a rally in financial shares.
- On CNBC this morning,Neera Tanden, Center for American progress President, discusses how raising the minimum wage can realistically address the issue of income inequality. Tandem said it is the right thing to do as it will help drive economic growth. Although, it is not the only thing that can be done to help those receiving entitlements and suggest raising taxes. We need economic growth and deficit reduction. Tandem pointed out that there are a lot of Americans working 40 hours a week and still living in poverty; it certainly makes sense to raise the minimum wage for these hard-working families. Click here to see the full video.
- Have a great day!
Wednesday’s Close
DJIA up 108.08 pts/+0.66%/ 16,481.94
S&P up 9.50 pts/+0.52%/ 1,848.38
Nasdaq up 31.86 pts/+0.76%/ 4,214.88
Thursday’s Futures
Dow Futures down 14.00 pts/-0.09%
S&P Futures down 2.75 pts/-0.16%
Nasdaq Futures down 2.50 pts/-0.01%
Overseas Markets
FTSE +0.06%
CAC 40 -0.24%
NIKKEI 225 -0.39%
HANG SENG +0.37%
Overseas: Global shares were little changed,after rallying yesterday, as investors weighed corporate earnings and awaited data on American jobless claims.
Economic Reports: Consumer Price Index (+0.3% expected) at 8:30 a.m.; Jobless Claims (327K expected) at 8:30 a.m.; Philadelphia Fed Survey (8.7 expected) at 10: 00 a.m.; Housing Market Index (57.5 expected) at 10:00 a.m.
Top Headlines:
- Apollo Global (APO) confirms that it has agreed to acquire CEC Entertainment (CEC+11.5%), the operator of the Chuck E. Cheese restaurant chain, for $1.3B including debt.
- Amazon (AMZN) workers in Delaware reject an opportunity to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union.
- J.C. Penney (JCP) said on Wednesday it would close 33 stores and cut 2,000 jobs as part of its efforts to return to profitability.
- According to sources, Charter Communications (CHTR) reached out to Comcast (CMCSA) this week about teaming up to buy Time Warner Cable (TWC), after the larger rival rejected its $37.3 billion takeover bid
- Microsoft (MSFT) is reportedly considering Ericsson CEO (ERIC) Hans Vestberg as a replacement for the (shy and) retiring Steve Ballmer.
- According to sources, Beijing Jingdong Trading Co., the Chinese online retailer backed by Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, plans to raise about $2 billion in an initial public offering in the second half.
Commodities/Currency:
Gold:up $0.50 to $1,238.80
Oil:up $0.26 to $94.43
EUR/USD 1.3601 -0.0002
USD/JPY 104.58 +0.0300
GBP/USD 1.6333 -0.0036
Volatility Index (VIX): As of the close of business Wednesday, January 15, 2014 the VIX is flat at 12.28
Companies Reporting Quarterly Earnings:
PNC Financial reports Q4 EPS $1.85, vs. Est. $1.65 and reports Q4 book value per share $72.21
Goldman Sachs reports Q4 EPS $4.60, vs. Est. $4.21 and Q4 revenue $8.78B, vs. Est. $7.71B
BlackRock reports Q4 adjusted EPS $4.92, may not compare to consensus of $4.33 and reports Q4 revenue $2.78B, vs. Est. $2.68B
UnitedHealth reports Q4 EPS $1.41, vs. Est. $1.40 and Q4 revenue $31.12B, vs. Est. $31.06B
Today’s Opening and Closing Bells:
Representatives from The Little Baby Face Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to providing children with birth deformities life changing restorative surgeries free of cost, will ring the The Opening Bell®
Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ Program will ring the NYSE Closing Bell.
For daily market recaps, check out our End of Day Report every evening!
Giuseppe Montefinese – Specialist
Corporate Actions & Market Watch
IntercontinentalExchange | NYSE
11 Wall St | New York, NY 10005
Tel: 212.656.5105 | Fax: 212.656.5893 | Mob: 347.237.2178
gmontefinese@nyx.com
Nothing herein constitutes an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security or a recommendation of any security or trading practice. Some information included above has been aggregated from multiple public third-party financial news sources for informational purposes only and redistributed to the NYSE Euronext community. NYSE Euronext does not control the content provided by these sources and does not guarantee the accuracy, integrity or quality of such content.
