Early Look

Tuesday, December 27, 2022

U.S. futures are pointing to a higher open, with the S&P +0.65% approaching 3,900 (which stands as the overnight high) as investors return from the three-day Christmas holiday weekend to light volumes. U.S. futures and Asian markets get a boost after reports China will reopen its border to international travelers on January 8th, after the country made an abrupt U-turn on its COVID-19 containment policies earlier this month. News flow is quiet, as expected, in the final week of trading for 2022. In Asian markets, The Nikkei Index rises +0.15% at 26,447, the Shanghai Index gains 30 points to 3,095, and the Hang Seng Index fell -86 points to 19,593. In Europe, the German DAX is up +0.75% to 14,045. Oil prices hit a three-week high with WTI crude above $80 per barrel and Brent topping $85 as China’s latest easing of COVID-19 restrictions spurred hopes of a fuel demand recovery.

Market Closing Prices Yesterday

·     The S&P 500 Index climbed 22.43 points, or 0.59%, to 3,844.82

·     The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 176.44 points, or 0.53%, to 33,203.93

·     The Nasdaq Composite gained 21.74 points, or 0.21%, to 10,497.86

·     The Russell 2000 Index advanced 6.85 points, or 0.39% to 1,760.93

Economic Calendar for Today

·     7:45 AM ET           ICSC Weekly Retail Sales

·     8:30 AM ET           Advance Goods Trade Balance for November

·     9:00 AM ET           Monthly Home Price Index M/M for October

·     9:00 AM ET           CaseShiller 20-City Index M/M for October

·     10:30 AM ET         Dallas Fed manufacturing for December

·     1:00 PM ET            US Treasury to sell $42B in 2-year notes

World News

·     South Korea suspended some commercial flights and scrambled military assets to shoot at drones from North Korea that crossed their heavily armed border Monday, Bloomberg reported

Sector News Breakdown

Consumer

·     U.S. retail sales excluding automotive increased 7.6% y/y this holiday season, running from November 1 through December 24. Mastercard SpendingPulse measures in-store and online retail sales across all forms of payment and is not adjusted for inflation. Online sales grew 10.6% compared to the same period last year, the preliminary insights show

·     Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) mentioned positively in Barron’s noting the stock has slipped 19% this year on less-than-robust sales, making it a buying opportunity

·     Mattel Inc. (MAT) mentioned positively in Barron’s saying the toy company will get a boost from movie tie-ups for its Monster High and Barbie dolls products, with sales growth pegged at 4% to 5% annually through 2024

·     Nio Inc. (NIO) cuts its Q4 delivery outlook to 38,500-39,500, down from previous outlook of 43,000-48,000m saying it has been facing challenges in deliveries and productions, along with supply chain constraints, caused by the outbreak of COVID-19 in China

·     Nio Inc. (NIO) founder and Chief Executive Officer William Li said the Chinese EV maker may face a challenging first half as a cut in government subsidies and the broader economic slowdown erode local demand in the world’s largest new-energy vehicle market – Bloomberg

·     Tesla Inc. (TSLA) halted production at its Shanghai plant on Saturday, Reuters reported, bringing forward by one day a plan to suspend operations at its most productive manufacturing hub for a week

·     Purple Innovation (PRPL) files $90M mixed securities shelf

Energy, Industrials and Materials

·     Oil prices hit a three-week high with WTI crude above $80 per barrel and Brent topping $85 as China’s latest easing of COVID-19 restrictions spurred hopes of a fuel demand recovery

·     Boeing Co. (BA) was awarded a U.S. Army contract valued at up to $497.1 million

·     Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) won a Navy contract worth up to as much as $1.05 billion

·     Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) canceled about two-thirds of its flights Monday or about 2,700, in a meltdown that stranded thousands of customers and that worsened while other airlines began to recover from the holiday winter storm.

Healthcare

·     KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (KALV) announced that it has entered into a subscription agreement with institutional investors to sell, in a registered direct offering, an aggregate of 9.484 million shares of common stock at a price of $6.00 per share and 182,470 prefunded warrants at a price of $5.999 for total gross proceeds of approximately $58 million

·     SpringWorks Therapeutics, Inc. (SWTX) said it has completed the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) to the FDA for nirogacestat, an investigational gamma secretase inhibitor, for the treatment of adults with desmoid tumors.

·     BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) says the FDA will discuss the contents of a refusal to file letter regarding its New Biologics License Application for NurOwn for the treatment of ALS. FDA scheduled a Type A meeting on Jan. 11, 2023

Technology, Media & Telecom

·     Apple Inc’s (AAPL) Japan unit is being charged 13 billion yen ($98 million) in additional taxes for bulk sales of iPhones and other Apple devices to foreign tourists that were incorrectly exempted from the consumption tax, the Nikkei newspaper said.

·     Japan’s Kyocera Corp plans to invest 1.3 trillion yen ($9.77 billion) for manufacturing facilities and development of semiconductor-related products over three years starting in the 2023/24 business year, the Nikkei daily reported

·     Leonteq said it was lowering its profit expectations for 2022 due to reduced client demand in the second half of the year.