Tag: Market Watch

Futures Rise as COVID-19-Sensitive Sectors Recover

U.S. stock index futures rose on Monday as energy and bank stocks recovered slightly from last week’s losses, although anticipation of several economic readings this week kept gains in check. Nasdaq futures hit a record high as demand for technology stocks remained strong. Heavyweights, including most FAANG majors, rose in premarket trade. Tech had largely…


Euro Slides as Austria’s Fourth National COVID-19 Lockdown Begins

London—The euro fell on Monday to trade close to a 16-month low on growing concerns over the impact of new COVID-19 restrictions in Europe, with Austria starting a full lockdown and Germany considering following suit. Austria began its fourth lockdown, the first introduced since vaccines became widely available, shutting Christmas markets, bars, cafes, and theatres….


World Stocks Off to a Cautious Start; Euro Struggles

LONDON—World stocks kicked off the week on a cautious note on Monday after posting a second consecutive weekly drop, and the euro struggled as traders weighed the risks of European lockdown restrictions and prospects of a faster Federal Reserve taper. Though Wall Street futures held comfortably in positive territory in early London trading, major European…


Worldwide IPOs Set New Record With $600 Billion Valuations

Global initial public offerings had the best year on record in 2021, especially those in the United States, with an abundance of liquidity and favorable monetary policies that have resulted in high company valuations and a special purpose acquisition (SPAC) boom. About 2,850 businesses and SPAC companies have raised more than $600 billion in IPOs…


Nasdaq Ends Atop 16,000 Mark for the First Time on Tech Strength

The Nasdaq Composite Index closed above 16,000 points for the first time on Friday, in its second-straight record finish powered by technology stocks, while pandemic jitters sent the Dow to its fourth losing session in the last five. Both the Nasdaq and S&P 500 index scored a winning week, up 1.2 percent and 0.3 percent…


Microsoft Sees Growing Iranian Spying Threat on IT Sector

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) has observed multiple Iranian threat actors targeting the IT services sector in attacks that aim to steal sign-in credentials belonging to downstream customer networks to enable further attacks. The Microsoft Threat Intelligence Center (MSTIC) and Digital Security Unit (DSU) assess this as part of a broader spying objective to compromise organizations of…


Nasdaq Futures at Record High as Economic Concerns Drive Tech Demand

Nasdaq index futures hit a record high on Friday as investors sought economically stable sectors after a small delay in voting on President Joe Biden’s $1.75 trillion spending bill, while rising COVID-19 cases in Europe also dented sentiment. S&P and Dow futures fell tracking losses in banks, airlines, and other economically sensitive sectors. Uncertainty over…


Euro Slumps as Austria Reimposes Lockdown; Dollar Flying High

LONDON—The euro slumped on Friday to near 16-month lows after Austria became the first country in western Europe to reimpose a full lockdown and Germany did not rule out doing the same. The single currency has been on the back foot all week, pressured by growing expectations that interest rates will be tightened faster elsewhere,…


Oil Drops Below $80 on European COVID-19 Concerns

LONDON—Oil prices dropped below $79 a barrel on Friday as a fresh surge in COVID-19 cases in Europe threatened to slow the economic recovery while investors also weighed a potential release of crude reserves by major economies to cool energy prices. Brent crude was down $2.44, or 3 percent, at $78.80 a barrel by 1110…


World Stocks Struggle Near Record Highs; Europe in Focus

LONDON—Concerns over slowing China growth and a spike in COVID-19 cases in Europe stymied the global equity markets rally on Friday with stocks struggling to cling to recent record highs and the euro looking on track for a second straight week of losses. While U.S. stocks closed at a record high on Thursday, aided by…