News of President Donald Trump’s decision to indefinitely suspend 5% US import tariffs on Mexico saw shares across both Europe and Asia trade higher overnight, as the two neighboring countries look to restore an already-delicate economical relationship.
Trump, who had initially threatened to impose tariffs on all Mexican goods starting this Monday, unless Mexico committed to do more to help reduce an increase in migrants arriving at the US southern border, tweeted over the weekend; “I have full confidence, especially after speaking to their President yesterday, that they will be very cooperative and want to get the job properly done”.
The President later tweeted this morning; “We have fully signed and documented another very important part of the Immigration and Security deal with Mexico”.
Key aspects of the agreement are still unclear however, including whether Mexico has pledged to buy more US agricultural products and if the deal materially expanded a previous commitment by Mexico to more vigorously police its southern border with Guatemala – more details will be “revealed in the not too distant future”.
Today’s developments follow suit to July’s first week of trading, the S&P 500’s best week since November, where a disappointing US jobs report became the latest data to stoke concern in regards to the health of the domestic economy and spurred hopes for a rate cut by the Federal Reserve.
The S&P 500 had ended Friday’s session +1.00% higher, taking its weekly gain to +4.50%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose +1.93%, its first weekly gain in five (+4.08%), while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added +0.98% to its value, resulting in a +4.85% weekly advance.
Ahead, in today’s economic calendar, Monday includes; Job Openings data April at 10am EST.
Meanwhile, in corporate news; Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) and Thor Industries (THO) are amongst the major companies scheduled to report their earnings today.
TODAY’S TOP HEADLINES
China & Tariffs: Trump is ‘perfectly happy’ to hit China with new tariffs if Xi meeting doesn’t go well, Mnuchin says. (CNBC)
US President Donald Trump will make a decision about whether to slap China with more tariffs after meeting with his Chinese counterpart later this month in Japan.
ECONOMIC CALENDAR
Today’s Economical Announcements.
10:00AM – ★★★ – JOLTs Job Openings (Apr) (Previous: 7.488M)
STOCKS IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Pre-Market Movers & News Related Stocks.
Tilray (TLRY): [NEWS] Struck a deal with its largest shareholder, Privateer Holdings, to extend the lock-up on sales of Privateer’s shares and provide for an orderly disposition of the 75 million Tilray shares it holds. This will be accomplished through a so-called “downstream merger” in which Tilray will acquire Privateer.
Spark Therapeutics (ONCE): [NEWS] Spark and Swiss drugmaker Roche have hit another delay in their planned combination.
Redfin (RDFN): [UPGRADE] Got a double upgrade to “overweight” from “underweight” at Stephens, based on valuation and the prospects for more e-commerce offerings in the real estate space.
Salesforce.com (CRM): [BUYOUT] Will buy analytics platform company Tableau Software (DATA) in an all-stock deal. Tableau shareholders will receive 1.103 Salesforce shares for each share they now hold, representing a 42 percent premium based on Friday’s closing prices.
Fiat Chrysler (FCAU): [NEWS] Fiat Chrysler and French automaker Renault are looking for ways to revive their abandoned merger plan, according to Reuters.
United Technologies (UTX): [MERGER] United Technologies and Raytheon (RTN) have announced a stock swap merger. Raytheon shareholders will receive 2.3348 shares for every share they now own, and the new company will be known as Raytheon Technologies.
Microsoft (MSFT): [NEWS] Microsoft has unveiled its next-generation Xbox videogame console. The company said the console will be 4 times more powerful than the current version and that it will hit store shelves during the 2020 holiday shopping season.
Kraft Heinz (KHC): [NEWS] Completed an internal investigation into its accounting prices and has also changed its financial practices as a result. Kraft Heinz saw its stock price take a hit when it revealed earlier this year that federal regulators were probing its finances.
Analog Devices (ADI): [UPGRADE] Got a double upgrade, this one from Goldman Sachs. Goldman upgraded Analog Devices to “buy” from “sell,” saying the end of a cyclical correction is near and that the company has “idiosyncratic” revenue drivers.
Dish Network (DISH): [NEWS] Is open to merging its satellite TV business with AT&T’s DirecTV unit, according to a Bloomberg report. There are currently no active talks about such a deal, however.
Uber (UBER): [NEWS] Uber Chief Operating Officer Barney Harford has stepped down, according to a Reuters report, with CEO Dara Khosrowshahi eliminating the position to take more control of operations.
American Airlines (AAL): [NEWS] American is extending cancellations of flights involving Boeing’s grounded 737 Max jet through September 3.
Molson Coors (TAP): [RATING] Credit Suisse initiated coverage of the beer brewer with an “underperform” rating, saying the issue with the company is its brand portfolio rather than marketing or management, and that the situation is not likely to improve.
MOMENTUM STOCKS
GAINERS: BYND, LJPC, BHVN, MDB, PRSP, TTD
DECLINERS: GES, SEAS
TODAY’S IPOs
None.