Morning Update: Stocks Rise Ahead of the Open

First Look

Stocks are pointed higher before the bell Tuesday. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue described trade negotiations with China to reporters as “dynamic” during a convention in Florida. Perdue said that China has offered some “very attractive numbers”, and that China could triple the amount of U.S. farm goods the country purchased in 2017 over the next five years. The British Parliament moved to block another Brexit vote after House of Commons speaker John Bercow demanded substantial changes to Prime Minister Theresa May’s new plan. The U.K. will now seek an extension of the March 29 Brexit deadline from EU leaders. Palladium hit record highs of $1,600 an ounce due to shortage concerns. Vale SA (VALE), the world's largest producer of iron ore and nickel, continues to face backlash from a deadly dam collapse in Brazil that killed hundreds back in January. The Nasdaq is up 0.35%, the Dow Jones is up 0.34%, the S&P 500 is up 0.33%.

Today's Sentiment

Quote of the Day

In civilized life, law floats in a sea of ethics.
Earl Warren

Stocks on the Move

TechnipFMC PLC (FTI), Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) and NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) are moving higher this morning, while Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM), Fidelity National Information Servcs Inc (FIS) and Assurant, Inc. (AIZ) are headed lower. Five Below Inc (FIVE), Papa John's Int'l, Inc. (PZZA) and Axon Enterprise Inc (AAXN) were upgraded by analysts this morning, while Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM), iRobot Corporation (IRBT) and Boeing Co (BA) were downgraded.

International Markets

Stocks in Asia are mixed. The Hang Seng is up 0.19%, the Hang Seng is up 0.19%, the Nikkei 225 is down -0.08% the Australia ASX All Ordinaries is down -0.11% and the Shanghai SE Composite Index is down -0.18%. In Europe stocks are up. The DAX is up 0.9%, the Euro Stoxx 50 is up 0.71%, the FTSE 100 is up 0.51% and the CAC 40 is up 0.46%.

Futures & Currencies

Energy futures are up today. The price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil is up 0.34 at 59.43 per barrel. Brent crude is up 0.51 at 68.05 per barrel. Natural Gas is up 0.03 at 2.88. Precious metals are up this morning. Gold is up 4.85 at 1308.56 per ounce. Platinum is up 10.01 at 846.31 while silver is up 0.08 at 15.4. The dollar is down compared to the major currencies today. The greenback is down against the euro, down against the Yen and down against the Pound.

Put/Call Ratio

Yesterday, 1,112,544 call contracts traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) compared to 576,718 put contracts. The single-session put/call was 0.52 while the 20-day moving average is now at 0.62.

Today's Economic Calendar

Earnings Expected Today