US futures rise on stimulus bets ahead of busy earnings week

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Equities: U.S. futures climbed at the start of the week that will see a slew of earnings reports from major companies, after Wall Street posted weekly gains on optimism over President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus plan.

Futures on the S&P 500 gained 0.3% as of 6:30 a.m. ET, while those on the Nasdaq 100 rallied 1%.

Tech giants Apple Inc., Netflix, Facebook and Microsoft Corp. were due to report financial results this week, along with Starbucks Corp., Tesla Inc., Boeing Co. and McDonald's Corp.

The benchmark S&P 500 gained 1.9% last week, its third week of gains in four, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 4.2%, the index's best weekly performance since November 2020.

Earlier this month, Biden proposed what would be the second-biggest emergency spending package in U.S. history, with markets hoping for Democratic lawmakers to be able to push it through Congress despite Republican opposition over the hefty price tag.

Biden on Jan. 22 signed executive orders aimed at speeding up the rollout of stimulus checks to Americans, and increasing federal wages.

The Federal Reserve is due to announce its first policy decision of the year on Wednesday.

The U.S. is expected to announce an entry ban on non-U.S. citizens traveling from the U.K., the 26 Schengen countries, Brazil and South Africa, Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Jan. 24.

Europe's Stoxx 600 rose 0.1% as companies continued to report earnings, but speculation over a third lockdown in France and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte's potential resignation capped gains.

Koninklijke Philips NV's shares rose 2.8% after the Dutch health technology company reported a 9.2% rise in fourth-quarter 2020 net profit. Germany's Siemens Energy AG increased 3.7% after it announced a 2.6% revenue increase and swung to a core profit in the first quarter of fiscal year 2021.

This week, the World Economic Forum's annual Davos summit will be held virtually, with European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and Chinese President Xi Jinping among today's speakers.

The FTSE 100 declined 0.3%.

In Asia, the Shanghai SE Composite rose 0.5% following a Jan. 24 report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development that China became the world's biggest recipient of foreign direct investment in 2020, overtaking the U.S.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 2.4%, driven by a 10.9% jump in Tencent Holdings Ltd., which marked the company's largest increase since 2011.

Japan's Nikkei 225 increased 0.7%.

Currencies: The Dollar Index was flat at 90.24, after a 0.6% decrease last week. The euro slipped 0.1% to $1.2155, following a 0.7% weekly gain.

Sterling was little changed at $1.3690, after gaining 0.7% last week. The Japanese yen was also flat, at 103.82 per dollar.

Bonds: The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasurys slipped 1 basis point to 1.08%, while that on equivalent maturity German debt fell 1 basis point to negative 0.53%.

Commodities: Brent crude oil increased 0.9% to $55.73 on the ICE Futures Exchange, after a 0.6% gain last week, while West Texas Intermediate crude oil added 1% to $52.80, following a 0.2% decrease.

The gold spot price rose 0.3% to $1,861.65 per ounce.

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NEWS AND ANALYSIS:

Biden signs executive order to speed up delivery of stimulus checks

Portugal's incumbent president wins 2nd term

Global foreign direct investment slumps in 2020; China beats US as top recipient

Financials

Deutsche Bank reviewing potentially missold i-bank products – FT

The bank suspects that for years, some employees deliberately sold products despite knowing that client companies had been wrongly categorized under the EU's Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, sources told the Financial Times.

Huntington to close 198 branches in TCF acquisition

The bank said the closures will allow it to substantially reduce its network of in-store branches, which have become less useful as delivery and curbside pickup reduce foot traffic.

Insurance

UK regulator to ask insurers for data on COVID-19 business interruption claims

In a letter to CEOs, the Financial Conduct Authority said it will ask for information on numbers and values of non-damage business interruption claims received and paid, following the Supreme Court's test case verdict.

United Insurance transfers personal lines business in 4 states to HCI

Separately, Brad Kalter resigned as United Insurance's chief legal officer, general counsel and secretary.

Energy and Utilities

Biden administration to take 'hard look' at LNG-by-rail rule, Buttigieg says

During his Senate confirmation hearing, U.S. Transportation Secretary nominee Pete Buttigieg suggested that the Biden administration could rescind a rule that broadly allows LNG transport by rail.

Delaware Senate passes bill to boost state's renewables target to 40% by 2035

Delaware state senators have passed a measure to lift and extend the state's renewable portfolio standard while creating a new carveout for solar generation.

Healthcare

Merck KGaA-Pfizer's Bavencio wins European approval for advanced bladder cancer

With the European Commission's approval, Bavencio, or avelumab, can now be used alone for the initial maintenance treatment of adults with urothelial carcinoma whose cancer has grown outside the organ or spread to other body parts.

Bristol Myers-Exelixis' kidney cancer drug combo wins US FDA approval

The combination treatment includes Bristol Myers' blockbuster drug Opdivo, or nivolumab, and Exelixis' Cabometyx, or cabozantinib, which can now be used as a first-line treatment option for patients with renal cell carcinoma.

Consumer

Tiger Global acquires €613.2M stake in Just Eat

The move made the U.S.-based hedge fund one of the largest shareholders in the food delivery company with 6.5 million shares, Bloomberg News reported.

Technology, Media & Telecommunication

Orange to sell 50% of fiber unit to consortium

The French telecommunications giant said the deal values Orange Concessions at €2.68 billion.

NBCUniversal to shutter sports network NBCSN by year-end

The Comcast Corp. unit will migrate much of NBCSN's programming, including NHL games and NASCAR races, to its sister general entertainment network USA.

Metals and Mining

Vale's dam burst settlement talks collapse – Reuters

State authorities lowered its demand to 40 billion reais from 54 billion reais but Vale offered 29 billion reais. The talks collapsed over the difference of 11 billion reais, Reuters said, citing a source.

Brazil's CSN Mineracao eyes 7.2B reais IPO – Reuters

The IPO will be priced at 8.50 reais to 11.35 reais per share, Reuters reported.

Real Estate

Blackstone REIT buys 60% of $1.6B industrial portfolios

The LBA Logistics-owned portfolios comprise 71 properties spanning 9.5 million square feet in West Coast markets.

Private Equity

Carlyle preparing to sell software company Net Motion – PE Hub

The private equity giant will likely launch the sale process in the following weeks and has tapped Evercore to advise on the transaction, sources told PE Hub.

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ECONOMIC INDICATOR:

U.S.

8:30 a.m. ET – Chicago Fed National Activity Index

10:30 a.m. ET – Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey

Japan

6:50 p.m. ET – BoJ Minutes

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EARNINGS:

Before market open

Kimberly-Clark Corp.

Cadence Bancorp.

After market close

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Inc.

Brown & Brown Inc.