Wall Street aims to build on records after October rally

U.S. stock futures rose Monday, setting the stage for further records ahead of a pivotal Federal Reserve decision later in the week.

• Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 145 points, or 0.4%, to 35,849.
• S&P 500 futures gained 17 points, or 0.4%, to trade at 4614.
• Nasdaq-100 futures was up 48.75 points, or 0.3%, at 15,887.25.

On Friday, the Dow,S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite all closed at records. Last month’s 7% rise for the S&P 500 was the best since November 2020, after the U.S. election and Pfizer’s announcement of the results of a study into its COVID-19 vaccine.

The backdrop for the stock market’s gains have been impressive earnings. According to Credit Suisse, earnings by S&P 500 companies have beaten estimates by 10% in the third quarter.

Investors will have plenty of results to sift through again this week, with 167 S&P 500 companies expected to report, a similar number to last week as the peak of earnings season continues. Among the highlights will be results from drugmakers Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc.

The Fed will announce its latest monetary policy decision on Wednesday, with expectations it will finally announce the tapering of asset purchases. Traders will be closely scrutinizing the commentary around its latest actions.

“We expect [Fed Chairman Jerome] Powell will not actively push back on market pricing of rate hikes given elevated uncertainty about the outlook, particularly as it relates to upside inflation risks,” said Deutsche Bank economists led by Matthew Luzzetti.

Also contributing to an upbeat tone was a weekend deal on steel and aluminum tariffs from the U.S. and European Union, as well as a convincing win for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party in Japan that sent the Nikkei 225 up 2.6%

• Shares of AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. rose more than 2% in premarket trade after the cinema operator said October admissions revenue was the highest since the start of the pandemic. The popular meme stock is up more than 1,500% in 2021.
• American Airlines Group Inc. shares were marginally lower after the carrier canceled nearly 2,000 weekend flights, citing weather and staffing issues.
• Harley-Davidson Inc. shares jumped 7% after the U.S.-EU agreement on steel and aluminum tariffs. The motorcycle maker was facing a European retaliatory tariff of 56%.
• McKesson Corp. said it would sell its U.K. businesses, including LloydsPharmacy, LloydsDirect, AAH Pharmaceuticals, LloydsPharmacy Clinical Homecare, LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor, MASTA and John Bell & Croyden, to asset management group Aurelius. McKesson shares rose 0.7%.
• Loews Corp. reported a rise in third-quarter earnings, as business improved at its subsidiaries.

• The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note rose 2.9 basis points to 1.584%. Yields and debt prices move in opposite directions.
• The ICE U.S. Dollar Index,a measure of the currency against a basket of six major rivals, was down 0.1%.
• Oil futures edged higher, with the U.S. benchmark up 0.8% at $84.20 a barrel. Gold futures ticked up 0.2% to $1,787.80 an ounce.
• In European equities, the Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.5%, while London’s FTSE 100 was up 0.3%.
• The Shanghai Composite edged down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng Index fell 0.9%.