By Carla Mozee, MarketWatch
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures pointed higher
Monday, before banking heavyweight Citigroup Inc. unveils quarterly
results alongside an expected multibillion-dollar settlement with
the U.S. Justice Department.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4) rose 60
points, or 0.4%, to 16,941, while those for the S&P 500 index
(SPU4) picked up 7 points, or 0.4%, to 1,969.30. The Nasdaq 100
index (NDU4) was up 19 points, or 0.5%, to 3,916.
The pace of the second-quarter earnings season will rev higher
this week with results due from key names in the financial and
technology sectors, the two largest sectors in the S&P 500
index (SPX).
The banking sector and "valuations are going to remain the main
focus for this week, as we will get the earnings from some of the
biggest tycoons of Wall Street," said Naeem Aslam, chief market
analyst at AvaTrade, in a note. "The expectations are high, and
investors are hoping that these earnings will cement the optimism
that growth is on track in the U.S. and the revenues are
healthy."
Before the bell on Monday, Citigroup (C) is expected to post
second-quarter earnings of $1.05 a share, according to a consensus
survey by FactSet. That compares with earnings of $1.25 a share in
the same period a year ago. Revenue is likely to decline to $18.91
billion from $20.48 billion a year ago, hurt by a slump in
fixed-income trading.
Also expected Monday is an announcement from Citigroup that it
has reached a $7 billion settlement with the U.S. Justice
Department, The Wall Street Journal reported. The deal would end an
investigation into whether the bank defrauded investors on
mortgage-backed securities leading up to the financial crisis.
There are no Federal Reserve speakers or data reports on the
calendar Monday, though Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen will field
questions from Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday. This week will
see the retail sales report for June on Tuesday, which could offer
further clues on whether consumers are starting to feel more
optimistic. Also on the docket this week are reports on new home
construction, manufacturing and consumer sentiment.
Outside of corporate earnings, shares of drug maker AbbVie Inc.
(ABBV) may be active after Shire PLC (SHPGY) said Monday it has
received a new takeover offer from AbbVie, and that it's willing to
recommend the deal, now valued at more than $53 billion, to its
shareholders.
Aecom Technology Corp. (ACM) said Sunday it is buying
engineering and construction company URS Corp. (URS) for $4 billion
in cash and stock, and will assume $2 billion in debt for a $6
billion total deal.
Whiting Petroleum Corp. on Sunday said it plans to buy Kodiak
Oil & Gas Corp. (KOG.V) in a deal worth $3.8 billion.
In the commodities market, futures for August crude oil (CLQ4)
fell 36 cents to $100.47 a barrel and gold futures (GCQ4) fell $15
to $1,322.30 an ounce.
Asian stocks overnight finished broadly higher, with Tokyo's
Nikkei Average ending up by 0.9%. European stocks rose as fears
about the soundness of Portuguese banks receded.
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