By Geoffrey Smith
Investing.com -- The Democratic Party gets a chance to put the Iowa debacle behind it, as New Hampshire votes in its primary. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell starts two days of testimony in Congress. The death toll from the coronavirus tops 1,000 but the rate of new infections slows, at least according to official Chinese data. Stocks have zeroed in on the new infections number and are set to push to new highs at the opening, while the merger of Sprint and T-Mobile is set to be cleared by a New York judge. Here's what you need to know in financial markets on Tuesday, 11th February.
1. New coronavirus infections slow; death toll tops 1,000
The death toll from the coronavirus hit 1,016, a 12% increase from Monday. However, the number of confirmed new cases fell 19% from Monday to less than 2,500. Also, the number of confirmed recoveries is still running at four times the death count. Assuming the reliability of Chinese data – which have been seriously questioned by local media in recent days – the outbreak appears to be losing momentum.
China’s transport ministry said it expects 160 million people to return to work over the next week, while reports suggest that the need for employers and local governments to screen workers returning from their home provinces will create delays in returning both production and consumption to pre-outbreak levels.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo called for a big fiscal stimulus to cushion the impact on Indonesia’s economy. Singapore’s tourism head said arrivals could fall as much as 30% this year, while a survey of Chinese realtors suggested new apartment sales were down 90% on the year in the first week of February.
2. Sanders seen leading in New Hampshire primary
The Democratic Party has a chance to put the debacle in Iowa behind it as voters head to the polls in the New Hampshire primary.
Reports suggest a stable lead for Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, due partly to his high recognition in the region, and a strong second place for South Bend mayor Pete Buttigeig. In other words, a reprise of the Iowa double-billing. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar is polling in third place.
The vote may deal potentially fatal blows to the campaigns of former vice-president Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren, both of whom fared badly in last week’s televised debate.
3. Stocks set for new records at opening
U.S. stock markets are set to extend gains and set new record highs at the opening, on hopes that the slowing rate of new infections signals the beginning of the end for the coronavirus.
By 6:30 AM ET (1130 GMT), Dow 30 futures were up 68 points or 0.2%, while S&P 500 Futures were up 0.2% and Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.3%.
Stocks likely to be in focus include Mastercard (NYSE:MA), which received approval from China’s central bank to run a bank card clearing operation, part of a gradual promised opening of the country’s financial sector.
Earnings season continues to wind down, with Exelon, Martin Marietta, advertising group Omnicom and toymaker Hasbro, among others. In Europe, Daimler and Michelin both fell after posting gloomy outlooks for 2020.
4. Jerome Powell heads up the Hill
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will start two days of regular testimony before Congress, with the focus likely to be on his assessment of the impact of the coronavirus on the outlook for the U.S. economy.
The January employment report showed no sign of derailing growth, with the creation of more jobs than expected, more people entering the labor force and average earnings ticking up slightly in annual terms.
Powell’s Fed colleagues Michelle Bowman and Patrick Harker both said on Monday that the Fed’s policy was easy enough to support the economy for now, and Powell too is expected to resist any pressure for further rate cuts or balance sheet expansion.
5. Sprint / T-Mobile merger set to be approved
A federal judge is due to rule on the much-delayed merger of Sprint (NYSE:S) and T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS), currently the third and fourth-largest mobile phone network operators in the U.S.
Sprint stock rose some 69% in after-hours trading on Monday after The Wall Street Journal reported that the merger is likely to be cleared, over the objections of state attorneys-general who argued it would lead to higher cellphone bills.
Shares in Deutsche Telekom (DE:DTEGn), T-Mobile’s controlling shareholder, rose 4.1% in Germany in early trading in Europe on Tuesday.