Coffee With Greta: Can Traders Shake the December Slump?
DJIA Futures: +2 (+0.01%)
SPX Futures: +2 (+0.1%)
NASDAQ Futures: +16 (+0.1%)
Good morning friends!
Futures are flat as traders gear up for a new week of trade.
Let’s get right to it!
Fresh Week
The major indexes are all poised to open slightly higher following two straight weeks of losses.
Recession fears took over last week after the Fed hiked rates again and raised its forecast for future moves.
The major indexes are all on track for monthly losses so far.
The Dow Jones is down 4.8% this month, the S&P 500 has lost 5.6%, and the Nasdaq has dropped 6.7%.
Tesla Rises After Musk’s Latest Twitter Poll
Tesla (TSLA) shares are up 2% ahead of the open after CEO Elon Musk ran a poll on Twitter asking whether he should step down as head of the company.
Musk said he would abide by the results of that poll.
57.5% voted ‘yes’ that he should step down, while 42.5% voted ‘no’.
Some Tesla shareholders have previously expressed concern that Musk’s duties at Twitter distract him from Tesla.
Musk has also sold off large chunks of Tesla stock to help fund his takeover of Twitter.
Regional Airline Ditches American For United
Mesa Air Group (MESA) shares are rallying 7.7% in premarket trade.
The regional carrier announced over the weekend it is winding down flights for American Airlines (AAL) and is close to an agreement to fly for United Airlines (UAL).
In a note to employees, Mesa’s CEO said, “We are excited to announce we have negotiated a wind down of our operations with American and are finalizing a new agreement with United which would transition all CRJ900s currently flying for American Eagle to United Express.”
The final Mesa flight for American will be on April 3.
Oil Prices Jump On Chinese Demand Hopes
Oil prices are higher this morning as optimism about the Chinese economy overshadows global recession fears.
West Texas Intermediate crude futures are up 1.3% to over $75 bbl while Brent crude futures are up 1.4% to over $80 bbl.
China is sticking by its relaxed Covid restrictions even as cases rise.
The country has also vowed to increase support for the economy and boost economic growth in 2023.
Homebuilder Sentiment Expected To Improve
Homebuilder sentiment is expected to improve slightly this month.
The National Association of Homebuilders releases its monthly sentiment index at 10:00 a.m. ET.
That survey is expected to show an improvement to 34 from 33.
Confidence dropped for the 11th straight month and hit a decade low in November as builders struggle with lower demand due to higher mortgage rates.
More housing market data is due later this week.
The Census Bureau reports housing starts and building permits Tuesday, the National Association of Realtors reports November existing home sales Wednesday, and the Census Bureau reports November new home sales Friday.