Opening Bell: China Data Beat Boosts U.S. Futures In Key NFP Week; Oil Surges

 | Dec 02, 2019 07:46

  • Global stocks surge on China's manufacturing data beat
  • U.S. futures set S&P 500, Dow for new records
  • Yields surge, resuming rising channel
  • Oil bounces back after Iraq suggests additional OPEC cuts
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Global markets started the last month of the year with exuberance this morning, as a surprise uptick in Chinese manufacturing boosted equities along with hopes that the economy might be in for a rebound.

The data beat from China, along with a record $7.4 billion Black Friday sales in the U.S., pumped markets with newfound vigor after Friday’s lackluster close on Wall Street, which came in the context of a three-month global rally. U.S. factory and jobs numbers coming out this week could be the next data stimulus investors need to hold onto record equity prices.

The wild card, however, remains the U.S.-China trade dispute. The manufacturing data turnaround may add to China’s recent record sale of dollar-denominated government bonds—which highlighted widespread faith in the Chinese economy—to harden the country's trade position.

Chinese officials were reported on Sunday to be seeking the removal of all existing tariffs in order to sign any phase-one deal. The U.S., as of now, has shown willingness to discard only the upcoming Dec. 15 round of tariffs.

Futures on the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones signaled their underlying benchmarks were set to open at the highest prices seen to date, while contracts on the NASDAQ 100 and Russell 2000 remained below their records—though they still edged higher.

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In Europe, shares of miners and energy companies pushed the STOXX 600 to within 0.05% from its November highs, which hit the closest price to the April 2015 all-time highs—about 1.3% below that mark. However, the index slipped below neutral levels by late European morning.