US pre-open: Futures point to solid gains following record losses in previous session
American Airlines Group
$14.02
13:10 18/04/24
US futures were pointing to solid gains ahead of the bell on Tuesday following the Dow Jones and S&P 500's worst daily showings since the Global Financial Crisis as sentiment was buoyed by news of potential stimulus measures aimed at stemming the economic downturn triggered by the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.
Nasdaq 100
17,394.31
12:15 18/04/24
As of 1220 GMT, Dow futures were up 3.52%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 futures had the indices opening 3.53% and 3.55% firmer, respectively.
The Dow closed a whopping 2,013.76 points lower on Monday, its biggest-ever daily drop, as coronavirus fears continued to roil shares, which combined with an unexpected record cut in prices from oil producer Saudi Arabia to make for a particularly dark day on Wall Street.
Donald Trump suggested on Monday that some sort of "payroll tax cut or relief" was being considered to offset the negative impact of the outbreak. The announcement of the potential incentives followed an $8.3bn emergency spending package signed by the President at the end of February.
Oil prices suffered in the previous session, with West Texas Intermediate prices diving more than 24% in their worst day since 1991 after Saudi Arabia cut crude prices for April following a collapse in OPEC+ talks.
However, prices were rallying before the opening bell, as West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 8.8% at $33.84 per barrel and Brent crude futures were ahead 8.4% at $37.23 a barrel.
IG's Joshua Mahony said: "Market sentiment has taken a turn for the better, as ongoing fears over the economic impact of the coronavirus have cooled in anticipation of a major stimulus package from President Trump today.
"While his address is expected to lay out proposals for a temporary payroll tax cut and measures to help those adversely affected by the virus, they are still just proposals which would need approval from lawmakers."
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which dropped below 0.5% for the first time ever on Monday, also slightly recovered and was just above 0.7% in the early hours.
In corporate news, American Airlines said it would be drastically slashing both domestic and international flights in the wake of the outbreak.
No major earnings or data points were scheduled for release on Tuesday.