U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Monday, setting up Wall Street to extend gains from the previous week after a slide in commodity prices eased worries of prolonged inflation.
Market Snapshot
At 7:52 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 111 points, or 0.35%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 19 points, or 0.49%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 78 points, or 0.64%.
Pre-Market Movers
Spirit Airlines(SAVE) – Spirit Airlines lost 4.7% in the premarket after saying it would accept the latestimproved takeover bidfromFrontier Group(ULCC). The latest Frontier cash-and-stock bid is valued at $2.7 billion based on Friday’s closing prices, while the most recentJetBlue(JBLU) all-cash offer is worth $3.7 billion. Spirit believes it is unlikely regulators would approve a combination with JetBlue, a notion that JetBlue has disputed. Frontier lost 1.7% while JetBlue was unchanged.
BioNTech(BNTX) – BioNTech added 2.1% in premarket trading after the drug maker and partnerPfizer(PFE) said their omicron-based Covid-19 booster shots generated an improved immune response against the variant.
Digital World Acquisition(DWAC) – In an SEC filing, the SPAC linked to former President Donald Trump’s media company said additional subpoenas were issued in an ongoing probe of its registration statement regarding the proposed business combination. Digital World said the investigation could materially impede, delay or even prevent the combination from being consummated. The stock slid 5.8% in the premarket.
Coinbase(COIN) – The cryptocurrency exchange operator saw its stock slide 5.3% in the premarket after Goldman downgraded it to “sell” from “neutral,” pointing to the continued fall in crypto prices and slower industry activity levels.
Altria(MO) – Altria rose 1% in the premarket after Juul won a temporary stay of the FDA ban on its e-cigarette products. Altria holds a 35% stake in Juul.
Newmark Group(NMRK) – The commercial real estate firm’s shares rose 1.6% in the premarket after the New York Post reported on increasing talk of a possible merger between Newmark and rival Cushman & Wakefield.
Walgreens(WBA) – India-based conglomerate Reliance Industries is reportedly in talks with global lenders to raise $8 billion to finance the purchase of Walgreens’ Boots drugstore chain. Walgreens added 1% in premarket trading.
Chewy(CHWY) – Chewy jumped 4.1% in premarket action after Needham upgraded it to “buy” from “hold,” saying that price increases for the pet products retailer are sticking and that supply chain issues are improving.
AutoZone(AZO) – The auto parts retailer was upgraded to “buy” from “neutral” at Goldman Sachs, which called it a good defensive play as the vast majority of auto parts sales are non-discretionary and demand remains relatively inelastic. The stock gained 1.9% in the premarket.
Market News
G7 nations announce Russia gold ban as summit starts under shadow of war
Members of the Group of Seven wealthy nations on Sunday announced a ban on imports of Russian gold as the G7 summit in the Bavarian Alps kicked off under the shadow of the war in Ukraine and consequences ranging from energy shortages to a food crisis.
The move by Britain, the United States, Japan and Canada is part of efforts to tighten the sanctions squeeze on Moscow and cut off its means of financing the invasion of Ukraine more than four months into a conflict Russian President Vladimir Putin calls a special military operation, Reuters reported.
Northrop and Raytheon win key U.S. hypersonic defense contracts
Raytheon Technologies Co(RTX.N)and Northrop Grumman Corp(NOC.N)have won U.S. contracts to continue developing missiles to intercept hypersonic weapons, the Pentagon said on Friday.
The decision means Lockheed Martin Co.(LMT.N), the No. 1 U.S. defense contractor, which had also been competing for a contract, has been eliminated for now from the multibillion dollar progam, but could be pulled back in at a later date.
Li Auto Announces More Than 30,000 L9 Electric SUV Reservations Over 3 Days
Li Auto (NASDAQ:LI) announced Friday that its orders for Li L9, its flagship smart SUV, have exceeded 30,000 in 72 hours since the vehicle was available for reservation. Shares are trading up over 4% pre-market following the news.
Li Auto closed at $39.24 per share at the end of Thursday’s trading. It was up 6.63% following the news reported by Chinese state media that the government was considering an extension of the country’s tax exemptions on electric-car purchases.
Tencent-Backer Prosus Unloads Nearly $4 Billion of JD.com Stock
An arm of South African internet giant Naspers Ltd. sold almost $4 billion worth of stock in JD.com Inc. that it got as dividends from investee Tencent, saying the e-commerce firm didn’t fit with its broader strategy.
Naspers subsidiary Prosus NV sold more than 131.8 million shares in JD it got from Tencent Holdings Ltd., about a 4% stake in the online retailer, Prosus said in a statement. “JD.com does not form part of the group’s core strategic focus,” it said in a filing Monday.