Stock futures muted ahead of big bank earnings

[April 15, 2019]   By Amy Caren Daniel

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were subdued on Monday as investors awaited more big banks earnings following JPMorgan's upbeat results, while sentiment was supported by reports of progress in trade talks.

JPMorgan Chase's results on Friday eased fears that the first-quarter earnings season would slam the brakes on Wall Street's big rally back from last year's slump, and helped put the benchmark S&P 500 within a percent of its September record closing high.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Citigroup Inc were both up 0.68% in premarket trading, ahead of their results later in the day. Bank of America Corp, which reports on Tuesday, inched up 0.10%.

U.S. negotiators have tempered demands that China curb industrial subsidies as a condition for a trade deal, sources told Reuters, while Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he hoped the trade talks were approaching a final lap.

Boeing Co, the single largest U.S. exporter to China, rose 0.3%.

At 6:40 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 41 points, or 0.16%. S&P 500 e-minis were up 1 points, or 0.03%, while Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 1.25 points, or 0.02%.

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., April 9, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Of the 29 S&P 500 companies reporting results so far, 79.3% have surpassed first-quarter earnings estimate, above the average of past four quarters, according to Refinitiv data.

Analysts now expect S&P 500 companies to show a 2.3% year-on-year decline in earnings, the first annual contraction since 2016.

However, financials are forecast to post earnings growth of 3%, among the few sectors estimated to log positive earnings growth.

Among other stocks moving premarket, Waste Management Inc rose 2.2% in light volumes, after the company said it would buy smaller rival Advanced Disposal Services Inc in a deal valued at $4.9 billion.

Wells Fargo & Co declined 1.6% following multiple price target cuts after the bank gave a tepid outlook on Friday.

(Reporting by Amy Caren Daniel in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

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