US pre-open: Futures higher after White House signals willingness to begin transition
Wall Street futures were pointing to a positive open ahead of the bell on Tuesday after the Trump administration finally signalled its willingness to begin the transition process.
As of 1235 GMT, Dow Jones futures were up 0.97%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 0.70% and 0.28% firmer, respectively.
The Dow Jones closed 327.79 points higher on Monday after further vaccine-related optimism as a result of a strong efficacy test from AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford's candidate gave markets a shot in the arm.
Futures turned positive after General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy informed President-elect Joe Biden that the White House had made federal resources available for his transition into the Oval Office.
While Trump said he was in favour of the move, he also refused to concede the election yet again and vowed to "keep up the good fight".
IG's Chris Beauchamp said: "Signs of movement in the US political deadlock have combined with the steady drip of vaccine news to underpin a market that has yet to breach the highs seen earlier in the month.
"But the trickle of good news stories has helped to hold markets near to those highs, leaving them well-placed to push higher into December."
As far as the coronavirus was concerned, the US notched another new record for Covid-19 infections, with the national seven-day average of daily new cases hitting 170,855 on Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University.
On the macro front, September's house price index will be released at 1400 GMT, while November's Conference Board consumer confidence index and the Richmond Fed's manufacturing index will both be published at 1500 GMT.
Turning to the central bank, Federal Reserve presidents James Bullard, John Williams and Richard Clarida will deliver comments at 1600 GMT, 1700 GMT and 1745 GMT.
In the corporate space, retailer Best Buy topped earnings guidance on the back of a same-store sales surge, while GAP will report earnings after the close.