On Monday, futures for major US stock indexes saw an uptick, signaling a rebound from the previous week's downturn. This shift comes after a significant drop fueled by underwhelming earnings reports from leading American banks and heightened geopolitical concerns in the Middle East, which left investors on edge.
Last session witnessed a decline of over 1% across the board for the key indexes, culminating in a week marked by losses following the unsatisfactory financial performances of prominent US banks.
In a recent development, President Joe Biden informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the US's decision to abstain from participating in a retaliatory strike against Iran, a move preferred by Netanyahu's war council following a substantial drone and missile attack on Israel. This decision was made public by sources privy to the matter.
The assault by Iran, involving over 300 missiles and drones, was a response to a presumed Israeli attack on its embassy in Syria, resulting in the deaths of several Revolutionary Guards leaders. Despite the scale of the attack, the damage inflicted upon Israel was relatively minor.
As the first-quarter earnings season progresses, the financial community anticipates reports from Charles Schwab and Goldman Sachs (GS, Financial) before the market opens. Additionally, remarks from Federal Reserve officials, including Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, are expected later in the day, with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell set to speak on Tuesday.
Investor attention will also be directed towards the March retail sales data, scheduled for release at 8:30 a.m. ET, which could provide insights into consumer behavior amidst the prevailing high-interest-rate scenario.
Recently, US stocks have experienced a sell-off as market participants adjust their expectations regarding the Federal Reserve's rate cuts for the year, with current projections significantly lower than those at the year's start.
According to the CME FedWatch Tool, there's now more than a 50% likelihood that the Fed will commence its rate-lowering cycle in July.
Early trading showed a positive trend with Dow e-minis (DJI) climbing 124 points or 0.32%, S&P 500 e-minis (SPX) advancing 27.25 points or 0.53%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis (NDX) increasing by 108.25 points or 0.60%.
While most large-cap tech stocks saw gains in premarket trading, Apple (AAPL, Financial) experienced a 0.7% drop following a report by IDC indicating a 10% decrease in the company's smartphone shipments for the first quarter of 2024. Salesforce (CRM, Financial) also saw a decrease of 3.5% amid reports of its potential acquisition of Informatica.
