Stock Futures Crash on Oil Price War, Outbreak Anxieties
News that OPEC's Friday talks with Russia collapsed is sparking a massive price war, sending old futures plummeting
Stocks are dramatically selling off in pre-market trading, with all three indexes looking to open with losses of 4.5% or more. Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) futures are erasing last weeks modest win, off over 1,200 points. For the last few weeks this selloff has been tied to anxieties over the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak, but now there's something new sparking panic among investors. Specifically, Saudi Arabia cut official crude selling prices for April, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) talks with Russia collapsed last Friday, sparking an all-out price war. The news has also sent the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield to yet another record low.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
Behind yet another wild week on Wall Street. What happens when the SPX hits correction territory, according to Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White. Plus, Facebook sued for more privacy violations; Costco halts free sample program; and more choppy waters for cruise line stocks.
5 Things You Need to Know Today
The Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 96.3 million call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 83.2 million put contracts. The single-session equity put/call ratio moved to 0.86, and the 21-day moving average was 0.65.Tech giant Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) is in hot water this morning after Australia's privacy regulator sued the company on allegations that it was sharing users' private data without their permission. FB is down 6% in pre-market trading in response, setting up a face-off with its year-over-year breakeven level. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is eyeing its third straight dip today. According to a report from USA Today, the discount retailer has decided to temporarily discontinue its free sample program in several of its stores amid COVID-19 fears. The retail concern is down 5.4% this morning. An announcement from the U.S. State Department urging Americans to avoid cruise ships as a way to combat the rapidly spreading COVID-19 outbreak has cruise line stocks taking yet another hit today. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (NYSE:RCL) is getting slammed the hardest in electronic trading, down 12.3%, set to open at a six-year low near the $57 level. Today PaySign (PAYS) and Stitch Fix (SFIX) will report earnings, while the economic calendar looks relatively bare.Asian, European Markets Start Week on Wrong Foot
Markets in Asia plummeted today, as energy stocks crumble in the wake of OPEC's collapsed talks with Russia on last Friday. Japan's Nikkei was the worst-performing in the region with a 5.1% loss, dragged down by Japan Petroleum Exploration's 12.7% fade. China's Shanghai Composite shed 3%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's Kospi both shed 4.2%.
The global selloff has hit Europe as well, with stocks entering bear market territory at midday. London's FTSE 100 is down 6.9%, while the French CAC 40 is off by 7.3%. Germany's DAX is down 7.1%, after the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country climbed to nearly 800.