By Peter Nurse
Investing.com - U.S. stocks are seen opening mixed Friday, with concerns of a fresh wave of Covid-19 infections weighing on cyclicals despite a positive quarterly earnings season.
At 7:05 AM ET (1105 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was down 175 points, or 0.5%, S&P 500 Futures traded 10 points, or 0.2%, lower, while Nasdaq 100 Futures outperformed, climbing 65 points, or 0.4%.
News earlier Friday that Austria will become the first country in western Europe to reimpose a full coronavirus lockdown to tackle a new wave of infections has hit sentiment on Wall Street amid worries this surge could shortly travel across the Atlantic.
Austria also stated Friday that it will require its whole population to be vaccinated as of February, something that would be difficult to mandate in America.
Europe appears to be the epicenter of the new wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, with Germany, Europe’s largest economy, recording a record number of cases on Thursday, and also refusing to rule out a new lockdown.
That said, the major indexes remain just below all-time highs, helped by a generally positive quarterly earnings season. More than 90% of the S&P 500 companies have reported in the third quarter, and over 80% of them reported earnings better than expectations, according to Refinitiv.
Global corporate dividends are also set to reach a record high this year, with Reuters analysis of Refinitiv data for 3,394 global companies with market capitalization of at least $1 billion, suggesting total payouts to shareholders are estimated to be $1.37 trillion in 2021.
Elsewhere, the U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote on the Democratic Party's $2 trillion spending bill later Friday.
There is little on the economic data agenda Friday, but Federal Reserve officials Christopher Waller and Richard Clarida are due to speak later in the session.
Turning to the corporate sector, the number of companies releasing earnings has slowed, and the focus will likely be on Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) after Bloomberg News reported that the tech giant, known for its iPhone, is pushing to launch its electric car as early as 2025.
Crude prices slumped Friday, falling to seven-week lows, as the move by Austria to reimpose a full lockdown raised fears of another Covid-fueled hit to demand this winter.
By 7:05 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 3.3% lower at $75.83 a barrel, on track to record a fall of almost 5% this week, while the Brent contract fell 3.5% to $78.38, down over 3% this week.
Additionally, gold futures rose 0.2% to $1,864.10/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.6% lower at 1.1296.