Stocks Rebound At The Start Of The Month

Stocks Move Higher On Potential Breakthrough In The Battle Against COVID-19

S&P 500 futures are gaining ground in premarket trading as traders look ready to buy stocks after yesterday’s sell-off.

Shares of Merck are up by more than 9% in premarket trading after the company reported that its antiviral drug molnupiravir reduced risk of hospitalization or death from coronavirus by about 50%. The study was so successful that the company had to stop it as it became unethical to give placebo drugs to patients.

News from Merck have clearly provided support to the market as an effective drug against coronavirus would be a major breakthrough in the fight against the pandemic. Interestingly, shares of vaccine makers like Moderna, Novavax and BioNTech are under material pressure in premarket trading, so the market is taking the news from Merck very seriously.

WTI Oil Pulls Back As OPEC+ May Boost Production

Yesterday, WTI oil gained upside momentum and made an attempt to settle above the $76 level amid reports that China was pushing its state-owned companies to secure energy supplies for winter at any cost.

However, oil’s upside move was short-lived as rumors emerged that OPEC+ may boost production in November. Currently, OPEC+ follows the schedule and increases production by 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) per month. However, markets are undersupplied, and some reports indicate that OPEC+ may boost its production by 800,000 bpd in November.

OPEC+ will discuss its policy on Monday. Traders believe that a production increase of 800,000 bpd in November is possible, so oil is moving towards the $74 level, which is bearish for oil-related stocks.

Personal Income Increased By 0.2% In August

U.S. has just released Personal Income and Personal Spending reports. Personal Income increased by 0.2% month-over-month in August compared to analyst consensus which called for growth of 0.3%. Personal Spending grew by 0.8% month-over-month compared to analyst consensus of 0.6%.

Today, traders will also take a look at the final reading of Manufacturing PMI report for September which is projected to show that Manufacturing PMI declined from 61.1 in August to 60.5 in September. Meanwhile, the final reading of Consumer Sentiment report for September is expected to indicate that Consumer Sentiment improved from 70.3 in August to 71 in September.

For a look at all of today’s economic events, check out our economic calendar.