Wall Street futures were subdued on Thursday as investors awaited indications on the U.S. economy and the monetary policy path after President Donald Trump signed a bill ending the longest government shutdown in the country's history.
Market Snapshot
At 8:37 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were down 46 points, or 0.1%, S&P 500 E-minis were down 9.5 points, or 0.14%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis were down 40.5 points, or 0.16%.
Pre-Market Movers
Cisco Systems shares jumped 6.7% after the networking company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue. Cisco also provided a strong financial forecast. For the current quarter, it expects earnings of between $1.01 and $1.03 a share, above analysts' estimates.
JD.com's American depositary receipts climbed 3% after the Chinese e-commerce giant reported better-than-expected revenue and net income. Revenue for JD's retail unit climbed 11% from a year ago to 250.6 billion yuan ($35.2 billion), easing fears that deflation and stagnant consumer spending in China may have weighed on sales.
Shares of Disney fell over 4% in premarket trading. Disney reported roughly flat revenue and a decline in operating income during its fiscal fourth quarter, as the entertainment giant's TV networks and movie business declined from the same period a year ago.
Shares of solar and battery company Canadian Solar up about 13% in premarket trading. CSIQ beats Q3 revenue estimates supported by strong energy storage deliveries and a high module shipments to profitable markets.
U.S.-listed shares of Alibaba rose 5% in premarket trading. Alibaba is planning to make comprehensive improvements to its major mobile artificial intelligence applications in the coming months, aiming to bring them closer to OpenAI's ChatGPT. This is a crucial step in its larger-scale competitive strategy, designed to compete with rivals and ultimately generate revenue from individual users.
Dollar Tree fell 3% to $102.99 after the stock was double downgraded. Goldman Sachs analysts cut their rating on the discount retailer to Sell from Buy, and lowered their price target to $103 from $133.
Nike rose 2.4% to $65.72 after Wells Fargo upgraded the sportswear maker's shares to Overweight from Equalweight. Analysts raised their price target on the stock to $75 from $60, implying it can rise 17% from its closing price Wednesday of $64.20.
Memory-chip stocks were sliding in premarket trading. Micron Technology slipped 1.5%, Sandisk dropped 3.2%, and Western Digital was down 3.1%. The selloff came after Japanese peer Kioxia reported dismal results for the six months ended Sept. 30. Operating profit tumbled 55% and revenue fell 16% from a year ago.
New Fortress Energy shares tumbled 9.5%. The liquefied natural gas producer said in a filing Wednesday that it was seeking an extension to file its report for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The company has been exploring options to restructure its $7.8 billion debt load.
Sealed Air stock surged 21%. Buyout firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice is in talks to take the packaging provider private, The Wall Street Journal reported late Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Market News
Record US Government Shutdown Ends as Trump Signs Spending Bill
President Donald Trump signed legislation to end the longest government shutdown in US history, marking the official conclusion to a 43-day impasse that halted food aid to millions of households, canceled thousands of flights and forced federal workers to go unpaid for more than a month.
Trump’s signature means the government can begin to resume normal operations, with federal workers expected back on the job starting Thursday.
Tencent Posts 15% Revenue Jump, Sustaining Growth Without Splashy AI Bets
Tencent Holdings Ltd. posted a faster-than-anticipated 15% rise in revenue, sustaining the steady growth that’s helped the social media leader attract investors despite eschewing splashy investments in AI infrastructure.
China’s most valuable company reported sales of 192.9 billion yuan ($27.2 billion) for the three months ended September, propelled by a better-than-estimated 43% surge in international gaming revenue. Net income jumped about 19%. Shares in major shareholder Prosus NV gained more than 2% in Europe.
Michael Burry of 'Big Short' fame deregisters Scion Asset Management
"Big Short" investor Michael Burry, known for his successful bets against the U.S. housing market in 2008, has deregistered his hedge fund, Scion Asset Management.
The Securities and Exchange Commission's database, opens new tab showed Scion's registration status as "terminated" as of November 10. Deregistering would imply the fund is not required to file reports with the regulator or any state.
Apple and Tencent Agree to 15% Fee on WeChat Mini Game Purchases - Bloomberg
Tencent Holdings Ltd. has agreed a deal with Apple Inc. that will see the iPhone maker handle payments and take a 15% cut of purchases in WeChat mini games and apps, according to people familiar with the discussions.
Resolving the issue, under negotiation between the two tech titans for over a year, opens a new revenue stream for Apple and takes pressure off Tencent. Apple had demanded Tencent close loopholes that app creators employed to funnel users to external payment systems, circumventing the iPhone’s typical 30% commission.
