The U.S. continues its campaign against Huawei plus stocks to watch today in the Money and Markets Wall Street Wake-Up.
The Morning Open
U.S. markets have opened down Thursday thanks largely to bank stocks.
As of 10 a.m. Eastern time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 136 points, or 0.4% to 29,050. The S&P 500 opened down 0.3% and the Nasdaq was down 0.2%.
Among the companies down early was Travelers Companies Inc. (NYSE: TRV) which was off 4.6% after it reported a disappointing Q4.
The Opening Bell
The U.S. is stepping up its game in the battle to prevent Chinese-based Huawei Corp. from being involved in developing 5G infrastructure globally.
According to Reuters, U.S. officials have tried to push British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ban Huawei from helping to build out 5G services in the U.K., citing it could compromise British intelligence.
The Chinese telecommunications company builds hardware that hangs on cellular towers.
U.S. concerns stem from the belief that Huawei could not resist an order from the Chinese government to conduct a cyberattack. The company has denied the claim.
“The appetite for a U.S.-U.K. trade agreement could be diminished by the U.K. making the wrong decision on Huawei,” a senior Trump administration official told The Wall Street Journal.
Stocks to Watch Today
Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) — The telecommunications company reported quarterly earnings and revenue beats Thursday. Shares were up 1.9% in premarket trading Thursday.
American Airlines Group Inc. (Nasdaq: AAL) — The airline company’s shares were up 1.7% in premarket trading after it beat analysts’ earnings estimates by $0.01 a share. Its revenue was in line with estimates.
VF Corp. (NYSE: VFC) — The apparel company — parent of The North Face and Vans — beat profit estimates by $0.02 a share, but was below revenue projections. It also lowered full-year guidance. Shares were down 4.8% in Thursday premarket trading.
In the News
A new partnership between European plane maker Airbus and Nasdaq will create a derivatives-based platform to help airlines protect against swings in ticket prices.
It works similar to how airlines currently use oil futures to hedge against the volatility in oil prices, according to CNBC.
Nasdaq will start providing the London-based platform Skystra to help airlines manage revenue risks by trading futures and options contracts based on proprietary indices.
Tech Companies Volunteer to Beef Up Presidential Campaigns’ Cybersecurity
Almost a dozen tech companies plan to provide “free or reduced-cost cybersecurity services” to presidential campaigns, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Federal Election Commission recently made policy changes making it easier for companies to provide such services under campaign finance law.
Companies like Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Cloudflare Inc. (NYSE: NET) are among those offering protection services to campaigns.
Asian Markets Hit By Virus Scare
Equity markets in Asia took a beating Thursday amid continued worries over a virus spreading in China.
Chinese shares had their biggest daily decline since May — dropping 3.1% Thursday. Hong Kong’s Heng Seng Index dropped 1.5% while the Japanese Nikkei Index tumbled 1%.
Other Morning Reads
What Is Social Security and How Does It Work? (Money and Markets)
China Expands Travel Restrictions as Virus Deaths Climb (Bloomberg)
Recession Watch: Chicago Fed Index Flashes Big Slowdown in December (Money and Markets)
Earnings Report
Here are the companies releasing earnings reports today:
Atlassian Corporation PLC (Nasdaq: TEAM)
Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC)
Nextgen Healthcare Inc. (Nasdaq: NXGN)
Skyworks Solutions Inc. (Nasdaq: SWKS)
SVB Financial Group (Nasdaq: SIVB)
Chart of the Day
The plant-based burger is getting more and more love from consumers. According to a survey from YouGov, 30% of Americans have tasted a plant-based burger and more of them liked it.
In the survey, 30% of people rated the plant-based-burger a 7 or higher. But that didn’t mean beef burgers weren’t still rated better.
Check back each morning before the opening bell for stocks to watch today with the Wall Street Wake-Up, here on Money and Markets.