UBS GWM Head of America’s Equities David Lefkowitz discusses his outlook for stocks and the possibility of future gains.
U.S. equity futures are trading mixed following another broad rally on Wall Street as investors wagered that the new variant of the COVID-19 virus won’t pose a big threat to the economy.
The major futures indexes suggest a gain of 0.4% gain for the Nasdaq, but a small decline for the Dow when the opening bell rings on Wall Street.
Shares of Pfizer are trading 2% lower in the premarket after studies suggest Pfizer shot may protect only partially against Omicron. The Omicron variant can partially evade protection from two doses of Pfizer and partner BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine, according to Reuters.
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On Tuesday, the S&P 500 rose 2.1% for its biggest gain since March, ending at 4,686.75. The Nasdaq climbed 3% to 15,686.92 and the Dow Jones Industrials rose 1.4% to 35,719.43.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 35719.43 | +492.40 | +1.40% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 4686.75 | +95.08 | +2.07% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 15686.916193 | +461.76 | +3.03% |
The rebound this week comes after the market posted two losing weeks in a row, weighed down by concerns over the spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19, mixed data on the job market and worries about inflation.
Comments Monday from Dr. Anthony Fauci, the White House’s chief medical adviser, said early indications suggest the omicron variant may be less dangerous than the delta variant, which has encouraged investors.
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Traders on Wednesday will be watching for the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. The Labor Department is expected to say that there were 10.369 million job openings available at the end of October. That’s down from 10.438 million in September. It would also mark the third straight monthly decline.
In Europe, London’s FTSE was off 0.1%, Germany’s DAX slipped 0.7% and France’s CAC declined 0.5%.
In Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index gained 1.4%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.1% and China’s Shanghai Composite index climbed 1.2%.
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Japan downgraded its growth estimate for the last quarter to minus 3.6% from an earlier reported contraction of 3.0%. The change reflected weaker consumer and public demand and trade and lower levels of private inventories.
Japan’s Parliament is expected to approve a proposed record stimulus package of 56 trillion yen ($490 billion), including cash handouts and aid to ailing businesses, to help the economy out of the doldrums worsened by the coronavirus pandemic.
Energy futures mostly rose on Tuesday, with the price of U.S. crude oil jumping 3.7% to $72.05 per barrel. That helped lift the S&P 500′s energy sector.
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On Wednesday, oil prices fell back, with U.S. benchmark crude losing $1.00 to $71.05 per barrel. Brent crude, the standard for pricing international oils, gave up 89 cents to $74.55 per barrel.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.