BY THE NUMBERS
U.S. stock futures were slightly lower Monday morning as Wall Street looks to bounce back from a losing week. Dow futures implied an opening decline of roughly 160 points, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures also were in the red. (CNBC)
* 10-year Treasury yield tops 2.76% to start the week (CNBC)
The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite saw the biggest declines last week, falling nearly 3.9% as investors prepared for more aggressive policy tightening from the Federal Reserve. The S&P 500 slid 1.27%, ending a three-week winning streak, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.28%. The 30-stock Dow has now fallen two weeks in a row.
Oil prices fell by more than 4% on Monday, sending U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude futures below $94 per barrel. International benchmark Brent dropped about 4.1% to around $98.50 per barrel. (Reuters)
IN THE NEWS
Twitter shares fell Monday in premarket trading after CEO Parag Agrawal announced in a tweet Sunday night that Elon Musk is no longer joining the social network's board of directors. Agrawal did not say whether Musk offered specific reasons for opting against becoming a Twitter director. While Agrawal warned about "distractions ahead," the CEO said Twitter would "remain open" to Musk's input. (CNBC)
Inflation in China came in hotter than expected for the month of March, as the world's second-largest economy experiences its worst wave of Covid infections since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020. (CNBC)
* China Covid outbreak: Guangzhou closes schools, Shanghai's new cases soar to a record (CNBC)
* Shanghai eases lockdown in some areas despite record Covid infections (Reuters)
Money Report
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged South Korean lawmakers to provide military aid, saying the country's sanctions on Russia cannot alone put an end to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. In his video address, Zelenskyy said, the "war is far from over" and indicated tens of thousands of citizens in the port city of Mariupol have likely been killed. (Associated Press)
* Russia appoints general with cruel history to oversee Ukraine offensive (NBC News)
* Ukraine repulses attacks in east as Russia presses to control Mariupol (Reuters)
French leader Emmanuel Macron and far-right rival Marine Le Pen are set to face off in a final vote after exit polls showed the two politicians leading the first round of French presidential elections. Macron, who is the incumbent, was in first place, while Le Pen was second. The runoff is set for April 24. (CNBC)
* Pakistani lawmakers elect Shahbaz Sharif as new premier (Reuters)
STOCKS TO WATCH
Nio (NIO) shares slumped 8.4% in premarket action after the China-based electric car maker suspended production due to Covid-19 related supply chain disruptions.
JetBlue (JBLU) is cutting back its summer schedule in an effort to avoid flight disruptions, while working to ramp up hiring. The New York-based airline added 1% in premarket trading.
Veru (VERU) shares surged 24.8% in the premarket after the drugmaker reported "overwhelming" evidence of efficacy for its experimental drug for treating hospitalized Covid-19 patients. It will meet with the Food and Drug Administration to seek emergency use authorization for the treatment.
Sailpoint Technologies (SAIL) shares soared 29.5% in premarket trading after the cybersecurity company agreed to be acquired by private-equity firm Thoma Bravo for $6.9 billion or $65.25 per share.
Shopify (SHOP) shares added 1.1% in the premarket after the e-commerce platform company proposed a 10-for-1 stock split, as well as the creation of a new "founder share" that would increase CEO Tobi Lutke's voting power to 40% from the current 34%.
AT&T (T) added 1.9% in the premarket after completing the spin-off of its WarnerMedia unit to Discovery Communications late Friday, with the stock of the newly combined Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD) set to begin trading today under its new name and ticker symbol. Separately, Deutsche Bank named Warner Brothers Discovery a "top pick" given its robust entertainment content.
Nvidia (NVDA) slid 3% in premarket action, following the announcement that the semiconductor firm would seek shareholder approval to double the number of authorized shares. That would give Nvidia the flexibility to take actions like stock splits and issuing equity incentives without a further shareholder vote.
Lowe's (LOW) fell 1% in the premarket after announcing the departure of David Denton as chief financial officer. Denton is leaving the home improvement retailer to take the same job at drugmaker Pfizer (PFE). He'll be replaced by Senior Vice President Brandon Sink effective April 30.
