Stocks expected to trade actively in the U.S. markets on Monday include Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN), United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X), Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX) and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT).
Market Level
USA – DJIA 15879.11, (-1.96%), S&P 500 1,790.29 (-2.09%), NASDAQ 4,128.17 (-2.15%)
Europe – FTSE 100 6,601.62 (-0.93%), DAX 9,375.70 (-0.17%), CAC 40 4,159.38 (-0.05%)
Asia – NIKKEI 15,005.73 (-2.51%), HANG SENG 21976.10 (-2.11%), KOSPI 1,910.34 (-1.56%) SHANGHAI 2,033.30 (-1.03%)
Commodities – Gold 1,267.60 (0.26%), Silver 19.89 (0.66%) OIL 96.85 (0.22%) CORN 428.00 (-0.35%) WHEAT 566.00 (0.13%)
Currency – USD/JPY 102.35 (0.07%), GBP/USD 1.6527 (0.31%), EUR/USD 1.3693 (0.13%)
10 year Treasury bond: 2.736 (0.016).
Economic & Market Update
U.S. market down – U.S. equities were down sharply on Friday as investors pulled their investments from the emerging markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down triple-digits for a second session; witnessing its worst week since November 2011. Currencies for some of the emerging markets were the worst hit with Turkey’s lira falling to a record low against the dollar while Argentina’s peso was down sharply against the U.S. currency.
European market down – European stocks were down on Monday continuing the last week’s selloff as investors remained concerned over China’s growth pace and volatility in emerging market currencies. At 0808 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index had slipped to 0.4% to 1,296.53 points, which is the lowest level seen since late December.
Asian market down – Japan’s Nikkei average was down to a two-month low on Monday owing to a rise in the Yen, and concerns among investors over a selloff in emerging-market assets. The Nikkei closed at its lowest level since Nov. 14. Hong Kong shares were also touching five-month lows on Monday following a massive selloff in the emerging markets. The Hang Seng Index closed at its lowest level since Aug. 30.
Stocks to watch
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is expected to dominate trading on Monday. The iPhone maker will report its fiscal first-quarter earnings after the market close on Monday. Analysts expect the company to post fiscal first-quarter earnings of $14.09 a share, according to a consensus survey by FactSet. “We expect Apple to report upside to our current fiscal Q1 estimates of 50.9 million iPhones and 24.5 million iPads,” Andy Hargreaves, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities, said in a report.
Urban Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:URBN)
Urban Outfitters could also gain some attention following an article in Barron’s online edition saying that the stock could gain 30% in 2014. The article stated that the company deserves a premium over other retailers because of its “savvy management, consistency in increasing sales and earnings and its strong balance sheet and cashflow.”
United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X)
United States Steel is expected to post a loss of $0.25 per share on revenue of $4.36 billion for the fourth quarter. The shares of the company gained 0.12% to $25.31 in the after-hours trading session.
Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ:STX)
For the second quarter, Seagate is expected to post earnings at $1.38 per share on revenue of $3.56 billion. In after-hours trading, shares of the technology firm were up 0.15% to $58.66.
Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE:CAT)
Caterpillar is projected to post earnings at $1.28 per share on revenue of $13.64 billion for the fourth quarter. Shares of the company slipped 0.72% to $85.55 in pre-market trading.
