By Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch
Chinese stimulus continue to buoy markets
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures moved firmly higher
on Tuesday, with investors waiting for earnings from prominent
companies, including Dow components DuPont, United Technologies and
Verizon.
Rallies in Asia and Europe also helped beef up U.S. stocks ahead
of the open, in what was seen as continued optimism over China's
move on Sunday to stimulate its economy by cutting the reserve
ratio for banks
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-cuts-banks-reserve-ratio-2015-04-19-94854558).
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) gained 91
points, or 0.5%, to 18,034, while those S&P 500 index (ESM5)
added 10.25 points, or 0.5%, to 2,101.25. Futures for the Nasdaq
100 index (NQM5) climbed 24 points, or 0.5%, to 4,431.50.
"It looks as though we will get another day of lackluster
fundamentals, however the [reserve requirement ratio] cut by the
PBOC is still pushing global equities sharply higher," said Nour
Al-Hammoury, chief market strategist at ADS Securities, in a note.
"The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones futures are both up as they
still price in the news from China."
The benchmarks also put in solid performances on Monday
(http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) on the back of
better-than-expected earnings and the stimulus news from China.
Earnings: More earnings on Tuesday could provide another boost
to the markets, with a hefty lineup of results ahead of the
bell.
Verizon Communications Inc.(VZ) is forecast to post
first-quarter earnings of 95 cents a share, according to a
consensus survey by FactSet.
DuPont & Co.(DD) is forecast to report first-quarter
earnings of $1.31 a share.
United Technologies Corp.(UTX) is expected to report
first-quarter earnings of $1.45 a share.
Baker Hughes Inc.(BHI) is likely to report first-quarter
earnings of 45 cents a share.
After the bell, Yahoo Inc.(YHOO) is projected to report
first-quarter earnings of 18 cents a share.
There were no major data releases or Federal Reserve speakers
scheduled for Tuesday. The Fed is in its "blackout" period leading
up to its policy meeting on April 28-29.
Other markets: Japanese and Chinese stocks closed firmly in
positive territory, and Europe followed suit with solid gains in
morning trade.
Greece's Athex Composite Index , however, bucked the positive
trend and slumped 3.3% amid fears the country is running out of
cash. The European Central Bank is now looking at measures to rein
in support for Greek banks
(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ecb-looking-at-reining-in-support-for-greek-banks-reports-2015-04-21)
under its emergency liquidity assistance (ELA), according to a
Bloomberg report on Tuesday.
Oil (CLK5) slipped 0.2%
(http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) with investors
closely tracking oil-production levels in the U.S. and the
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Metals were
mostly rising, while the ICE dollar index (DXY) was little
changed.
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