US stocks will be in focus today, ahead of economic data scheduled to be released later in the day.
Context: US stocks closed lower on Friday, falling to their worst levels in around two weeks after Texas and Florida paused their reopening measures following a surge in coronavirus cases.
Details: The US reported 37,000 new cases on Thursday, the highest single-day rise, taking the number of infections past the 2.5 million mark by the end of the week.
With Texas and Florida recording 6,426 and 8,900 new cases on Thursday, the governors of both states ordered restrictions on certain businesses, reversing some of their reopening measures.
Markets also digested results of the US Fed’s annual bank stress tests, requiring the preservation of capital by banks.
On the economic data front, US consumer spending surged to a record 8.2% in May, following a sharp decline in April. However, the final reading of the University of Michigan’s consumer-sentiment index fell to 78.1 in June, versus an initial reading of 78.9.
The Dow Jones index dipped 730 points to end at 25,015.55 on Friday, while the S&P 500 shed around 75 points to end the indices trading day at 3,009.05. All eleven sectors of the S&P 500 finished in the red. For the week, the Dow Jones index and the S&P 500 lost 3.3% and 2.9%, respectively. The Nasdaq lost 2.6% to close at 9,757.22 on Friday, falling 1.9% for the week.
Shares of Nike nosedived around 8% on Friday after the company posted a loss for the recent quarter, with total sales declining by 38%. Gap’s stock climbed around 19% after the company announced a collaboration with Kanye West.
What to watch: Investors await a couple of economic reports from the US, including the pending home sales and Dallas Fed manufacturing index. The pending home sales index, which fell 21.8% in April, is expected to rise 19.7% in May. The Dallas Fed manufacturing index is expected to climb to -49.2 in May, from a record low of -74.0 in April
Markets will also continue to assess the coronavirus numbers, with the US reporting around 2,548,996 cases with 125,803 deaths.
Other Markets: European indices were trading higher at 8:30am GMT, with the FTSE 100, French 40 and Dax 30 index up by 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively.