First Look
Futures trading indicates a higher open for U.S. stocks Thursday morning. It seems market participants are still optimistic that ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and China could head off the imposition of a new round of tariffs set to take effect on Dec. 15. Stocks are still down for the week as it seems the words of President Trump and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who had negative things to say about the state of negotiations earlier in the week, still carry more weight than the unnamed officials who are now reportedly saying progress is being made. The Nasdaq is up 0.41%, the S&P 500 is up 0.33%, the S&P 500 is up 0.33%.
Today's Sentiment
NeutralQuote of the Day
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.
Winston Churchill
Daily Action Trade
Stocks on the Move
H & R Block Inc (HRB), Dollar General Corp. (DG) and Nike Inc (NKE) are moving higher this morning, while F5 Networks, Inc. (FFIV), Under Armour Inc Class A (UAA) and PACCAR Inc (PCAR) are headed lower. Alphabet Inc Class C (GOOG), Facebook, Inc. Common Stock (FB) and Nike Inc (NKE) were upgraded by analysts this morning, while At Home Group Inc (HOME), F5 Networks, Inc. (FFIV) and Etsy Inc (ETSY) were downgraded.
International Markets
Stocks in Asia are mixed. The Australia ASX All Ordinaries is up 1.15%, the Shanghai SE Composite Index is up 0.74%, the Nikkei 225 is up 0.71% the Hang Seng is up 0.59% and the Mumbai Sensex is down -0.17%. In Europe stocks are mixed. The CAC 40 is up 0.71%, the Euro Stoxx 50 is up 0.38%, the DAX is down -0.01% and the FTSE 100 is down -0.17%.
Futures & Currencies
Energy futures are up today. The price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil is up 0.21 at 58.64 per barrel. Brent crude is up 0.47 at 63.47 per barrel. Natural Gas is up 0.03 at 2.43. Precious metals are mixed this morning. Gold is up 3.61 at 1478.2 per ounce. Platinum is down -1.18 at 894.44 while silver is up 0.08 at 16.94. 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, 1,253,768 call contracts traded on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) compared to 1,107,341 put contracts. The single-session put/call was 0.88 while the 20-day moving average is now at 0.67.
Today's Economic Calendar
| No. | What's Happening? | Period | Release Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Initial Claims | 11/30 | 08:30 |
| 2 | Continuing Claims | 11/23 | 08:30 |
| 3 | Trade Balance | Oct | 08:30 |
| 4 | Factory Orders | Oct | 10:00 |
| 5 | EIA Natural Gas Inventories | 11/30 | 10:30 |
