Welcome to August!
The month is off to a positive start, with investors calmed by indications that the Federal Reserve will not be too hasty when scaling down its massive bond-buying program.
U.S. stock futures were up slightly ahead.
The U.S. government will publish its weekly report on initial jobless claims at 8:30 a.m. ET. At 10 a.m., the Institute for Supply Management will release its monthly manufacturing sentiment index, while the Census Bureau will issue data on construction spending.
Major automakers are also set to release their monthly sales results throughout the day.
On the corporate front, Exxon Mobil, Proctor & Gamble and DirecTV are set to report quarterly results before the opening bell. LinkedIn is due after the close.
Cigna reported a jump in earnings that beat even the most bullish forecasts of analysts, while Time Warner Cable also met forecasts with its improved profit.
Sony reported first-quarter results showing a 13% jump in sales compared to the same quarter a year earlier. The revenue boost was largely the result of a weaker yen and stronger smartphone sales.
Yelp shares jumped 9% in premarket trading after the online review site reported a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss late Wednesday.
Shares of J.C. Penney rebounded 9% in premarket trading following a 10% sell-off Wednesday. The retailer issued a statement early Thursday disputing reports that CIT had cut off some of the credit to its suppliers due to concerns about Penney’s ability to pay them.. However, an analyst for Citigroup cut her recommendation on the stock to a “sell” from “neutral.”
Overall, U.S. stocks finished largely unchanged Wednesday. But when you look at July as a whole, the markets made some impressive moves higher. All three major indexes gained between 4% and 7%.
European markets posted small gains in morning trading. Investors are waiting for the latest monetary policy decisions from the central banks in the region — the Bank of England and the European Central Bank.
Investors and economists expect that both central banks will maintain their current policy and leave rates unchanged.
Asian markets all closed with gains, with investor sentiment buoyed by the latest Fed statement and China’s purchasing managers’ index data.
The Shanghai Composite index surged by 1.8%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ran up by 0.9%. In Japan, Tokyo’s Nikkei jumped by 2.5%.
