Dow Aims for Longest Quarterly Win Streak in Over 20 Years
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are pointed lower this morning, after the index posted its second straight win yesterday. Traders are still trying to find their footing after Fed Chair Janet Yellen's hawkish remarks and President Trump's tax plan earlier this week. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) is also signaling a lower start, while the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) edges higher before the bell. All three indexes, however, are on track to post monthly gains, and the Dow is set for an eighth straight quarter higher -- its longestwin streak in over 20 years.
Meanwhile, traders are digesting the Fed-watched personal consumption expenditures (PCE) index, which rose by the slowest annual pace since November 2015 in August. Investors will also hear from Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker, who will round out a busy week of Fed appearances, ahead of Yellen's highly anticipated speech on Wednesday.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
The 25 worst October stocks.2 car stocks that could zoom higher on a short squeeze.How Netflix options traders nailed a 130% profit in less than a month.Plus, the biotech stock set to double; Twitter's "inadequate" user suspension; and the latest cybersecurity breach.
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 845,078 call contracts traded on Thursday, compared to 436,622 put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio dropped to 0.52 -- the lowest since June -- and the 21-day moving average remained at 0.62.Last seen trading 137.7% higher before the bell, Zogenix, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZGNX) stock could more than double this morning and hit a three-year high, after the biotech's epilepsy drug met the main goal in a late-stage study. The medical research company plans to submit applications for the drug in the U.S. and Europe in the second half of 2018.Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) stock is trading fractionally lower in electronic trading, after the social media giant suspended about 200 accounts linked to Russia as it investigates users' efforts to interfere with the 2016 presidential election. Twitter's response, however, was inadequate, according to Senator Mark Warner, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.Amazon's Whole Foods unit is facing a credit card security breach involving restaurants and other venues within Whole Foods stores, which marks the latest cybersecurity hack, following a massive data breach at Equifax earlier this month. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) stock was last seen trading 0.3% higher in before the bell.Traders will also react to the Chicago purchasing managers index (PMI) and the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey. There are no notable earnings reports due, but another round of Fed speeches is scheduled for next week.
Overseas Trading
Most Asian markets finished higher today ahead of a number of regional public holidays scheduled for next week. In South Korea, the Kospi jumped 0.9% -- snapping a seven-session losing streak, its longest in three years -- as automakers Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors surged. Hong Kong's Hang Seng and China's Shanghai Composite also gained ground, adding 0.5% and 0.3%, respectively. Japan's Nikkei, meanwhile, closed down 0.03%, as traders weighed an eighth straight monthly gain in consumer prices and a better-than-expected increase in industrial output against a slower-than-forecast rise in retail sales.
European stocks are higher at midday, ahead of Sunday's independence referendum in Catalonia -- even though the vote has been ruled illegal by Spanish courts. Economic data is also in focus, with the 1.5% rise in eurozone consumer prices in September missing the 1.6% consensus forecast. Elsewhere, consumer spending in France cooled in August, Germany's unemployment rate hit a record low, and second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) in the U.K. was unrevised at 0.3%. At last check, the French CAC 40 was up 0.02%, the German DAX was 0.4% higher, and London's FTSE 100 was flirting with a 0.6% lead.