Dow futures gain as stocks try to keep comeback from bear market lows going
U.S. stock market index futures rose on Monday morning following a major rebound last week from this year’s steep declines. Despite the bounce, Wall Street is preparing to wrap up the worst first half for stocks in decades. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.1%, or 37 points. S&P 500 futures gained 0.2%, and Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 0.3%. Those moves followed a major comeback week that saw the Dow industrials jump more than 800 points, or 2.7%. The S&P 500 popped 3.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite surged 3.3%. Those gains helped the major averages post their first positive week since May. The Dow climbed 5.4% last week. The S&P 500 increased 6.5%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 7.5%. The S&P 500 is up 7.5% since hitting a bear-market low in mid-June, although the benchmark is still off 19% from its high and 18% since the year began. Market participants continued to assess whether stocks have found a bottom, or are instead just briefly rebounding from oversold conditions. Stocks could continue to get a lift in the near term this week, as investors rebalance their holdings for the quarter-end. The market volatility isn’t over yet, however, UBS equity strategist Christopher Swann said in a note Monday. “The concerns that caused the index to fall into bear market territory earlier in June have not gone away—including worries over the pace of rate rises, the threat of recession, and political risks,” he said. “While the most probable single scenario, in our view, would feature an economic soft landing and market stabilization, sentiment is likely to remain fickle, and this is not a market to position for any one scenario with high conviction.” BioNTech shares advanced almost 3% in premarket trading after the drug maker said its Omicron-based Covid-19 booster generates an improved immune response against that variant. Meanwhile, shares of Spirit Airlines fell about 5% in premarket trading after the company said it would accept the latest takeover bid from Frontier Group. Nike will report earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter after the bell Monday, ahead of a handful of other key reporters this week including Bed Bath & Beyond, General Mills, Constellation Brands and Walgreens. On the economic front, Wall Street is expecting the latest reading of durable goods orders to come out Monday before the bell. Traders are also watching for the pending home sales report, which is expected at 10 a.m. ET on Monday. Shares in the Asia-Pacific traded higher on Monday as investors assess inflation and recession fears. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index led gains in the region, to end the day 2.35% up at 22,229.52, after trading more than 3% higher in the session. The Hang Seng Tech index popped 4.71%. Mainland Chinese markets also gained. The Shanghai Composite climbed 0.88% to close at 3,379.19, and the Shenzhen Component rose 1.1% to 12,825.57. Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.43% to close at 26,871.27, while the Topix rose 1.11% to 1,887.42. The Kospi in South Korea gained 1.49% to end the session at 2,401.92, and the Kosdaq was 2.71% higher at 770.6. Oil prices edged higher on Monday in a volatile session as investors waited for any moves against Russian oil and gas exports that might come out of a meeting of leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) nations in Germany. The prospect of even tighter supplies loomed over the market as western governments sought ways to cut Russia’s ability to fund its war in Ukraine, even though G7 leaders were also expected to discuss a revival of the Iran nuclear deal, which might lead to more Iranian oil exports. Members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, will likely stick to a plan for accelerated oil output increases in August when they meet on Thursday, sources said. But for now, pressing supply worries outweighed growing concerns over the potential for a global recession following a string of downbeat economic data from the United States, the world’s biggest oil consumer. OPEC member Libya’s national oil company said on Monday it might have to halt exports in the Gulf of Sirte area within 72 hours amid unrest that has restricted production. Brent crude futures rose 46 cents to $113.58 a barrel after rebounding 2.8% on Friday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $107.82 a barrel, up 20 cents, or 0.19%, following a 3.2% gain in the previous session. Both contracts fell last week for the second week in a row as interest rate hikes in key economies strengthened the dollar and fanned recession fears. Gold prices gained on Monday, as news of some Western nations planning to officially ban imports of the metal from Russia for its invasion of Ukraine sparked some interest in bullion. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $1,835.58 per ounce by 0231 GMT. U.S. gold futures were up 0.3% at $1,836.30.