U.S. stock futures higher on fiscal cliff hopes; Dow up 0.65%
Investing.com
Published Nov 19, 2012 07:27AM ET
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a gain of 0.65%, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.8% increase, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.7% gain.
Investors continued to monitor developments surrounding the looming “fiscal cliff” in the U.S., approximately USD600 billion in automatic tax hikes and spending cuts due to come into effect on January 1.
Sentiment was bolstered after U.S. Congressional leaders said talks with President Barack Obama on Friday to avert the fiscal crisis were "constructive."
There are fears the U.S. economy will fall back into a recession, unless a divided Congress and the White House can work out a compromise in the six weeks left before the January 1 deadline.
Shares in home improvement retailer Lowe’s rallied 3.3% in pre-market trade after reporting a 76% jump in third quarter net profit to USD368 million. Revenue during the period rose 1.9% to USD12.1 billion, above estimates for sales of USD11.9 billion.
The upbeat results prompted the company to boost its full-year earnings outlook.
Shares in larger rival Home Depot tacked on 1% following the results.
Other companies releasing corporate earnings on Monday included, Tyson Foods, Urban Outfitters, Agilent Technologies and Krispy Kreme.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release an industry report on existing home sales.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets rallied, as hopes for a resolution on the U.S. fiscal cliff bolstered market sentiment.
The EURO STOXX 50 jumped 1.5%, France’s CAC 40 rose 1.65%, Germany's DAX rallied 1.6%, while Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.25%.
Investors looked ahead to a meeting of euro zone finance ministers on Tuesday to discuss unlocking Greece’s next tranche of financial aid.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.5%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged 1.4%.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei rallied to a two-month closing high, boosted by ongoing weakness in the yen, which fell to a seven-month low against the U.S. dollar.
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Written By: Investing.com
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