Stock Futures Rise; Europe, China in Focus
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The markets looked to stem a three-session slump on Tuesday, with traders digesting progress on Spain's bank bailout and mixed economic data from China and Europe.
Today's Markets
As of 8:15 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 43 points to 12728, S&P 500 futures gained 3 points to 1352 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 8 points to 2614.
The Eurogroup, which represents eurozone finance ministers, released a statement overnight reaffirming its "strong commitment to do whatever is necessary to ensure the financial stability of the euro area." While it didn't offer many specifics, it said Spain's banks would be recapitalized through the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF), the bloc's temporary rescue facility, until the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) comes online. It also reiterated a previous statement that neither fund will become a senior debt holder in the banks it injects capital into, helping to relieve worries about the effectiveness of the move.
Market participants remained wary: "Overall we don't know how much money it's going to take to solve the issue," James Hughes, a senior market analyst at Alpari, said in an interview with FOX Business. "It's like a band-aid."
European industrial production data, which tracks factory activity, released on the day were mixed. The U.K. and Italy both came in ahead of expectations, but France came in weaker.
Traders were also watching the German constitutional court that is hearing arguments on whether the country will support the eurozone fiscal pact and the creation of ESM. Germany is Europe's biggest economy and its backing is critical in any euro-wide measures so the markets are often especially sensitive to headlines from the country.
The Euro Stoxx 50, which tracks eurozone blue chips, jumped 1.2%. The euro slipped 0.03% to $1.2309.
Elsewhere, China's trade surplus expanded dramatically in June. However, part of that expansion was led by a much slower-than-expected growth in imports. Some economists suggested that this may be a sign of faltering domestic demand, however others disagreed.
"We think the June import data paint a more positive picture than it first appears," economists at Barclays wrote in a note to clients. "We see import volume recovering, albeit slowly, along with a gradual improvement in domestic demand."
In corporate news, Alcoa (NYSE:AA) kicked off earnings season after the close on Monday by beating analysts' expectations on the top and bottom lines. Shares of Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE:AMD) came under pressure after the chipmaker cut back its second-quarter revenue expectations to a drop of 11% from the prior quarter. The company had initially forecast a gain of 3%, plus or minus 3%.
Oil futures were little changed. The benchmark contract traded in New York fell 23 cents, or 0.24%, to $85.72 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline rose 0.31% to $2.769 a gallon.
In metals, gold climbed $6.20, or 0.38%, to $1,595 a troy ounce.
Foreign Markets
The Euro Stoxx 50 rallied 1.2% to 2254, the English FTSE 100 gained 0.83% to 5674 and the German DAX jumped 1.3% to 6471.
In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 fell 0.44% to 8858 and the Japanese Nikkei 225 slipped 0.16% to 19396.