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* Trump moves to ease trade tensions with China
* Shares of tariff-sensitive Apple, Boeing (NYSE:BA) rise
* U.S. core capital goods orders rise; shipments tumble
* Futures up: Dow 0.77%, S&P 0.55%, Nasdaq 0.64%
(Adds comment, details; updates prices)
By Akanksha Rana
Aug 26 (Reuters) - Wall Street was set to open higher on
Monday as U.S. President Donald Trump moved to ease trade
tensions with China, soothing investor nerves after intense
feuding between the world's top two economies last week sent
stocks into a tailspin.
The benchmark S&P 500 index .SPX logged its worst run of
weekly losses on Friday since a selloff in late May after both
sides threatened to slap more tariffs on each other's goods, and
Trump told U.S. companies to look for alternatives to doing
business with China. In a softening of stance, Trump said on Monday Beijing had
contacted Washington overnight to say it wanted to return to the
negotiating table, adding that talks between the two countries
were "more meaningful" than any time. "The sentiment today is conciliatory, the president is
trying to walk back," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at
National Securities in New York.
"Whether or not he (Trump) has a phone call with China
doesn't matter, the point is that he is attempting to keep the
September meeting scheduled and get back to the negotiating
bit."
Shares of tariff-sensitive stocks including Apple Inc
AAPL.O rose 1.8%, while those in Boeing Co BA.N jumped
2.6%in premarket trading.
Chipmakers, which are heavily reliant on China for their
revenue, also rose in early trading. Intel Corp INTC.O ,
Qualcomm Inc QCOM.O , Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD.O and
Nvidia Corp NVDA.O were up between 1.2% and 3%.
Concerns about the global economy slipping into recession
and uncertainty over the pace of U.S. interest rate cuts have
made investors nervous about how far the longest cycle of U.S.
expansion can survive. The S&P 500 closed about 6% off its
record high on Friday.
However, a batch of strong earnings from retailers including
Walmart (NYSE:WMT) Inc WMT.N and Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) TGT.N in the past weeks
has bolstered confidence in domestic growth.
Data from the Commerce Department showed new orders for key
U.S.-made capital goods unexpectedly rose in July, but shipments
fell by the most in nearly three years, suggesting business
investment remained soft and could weaken further amid an
escalation in U.S.-China trade tensions. At 8:52 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 197 points, or
0.77%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 15.75 points, or 0.55%
and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 48.25 points, or 0.64%.
Among other stocks, Celgene Corp CELG.O rose 3.6% after
Amgen Inc AMGN.O said on Monday it would buy the company's
psoriasis drug Otezla, clearing the way for Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY)
BMY.N to go ahead with its $74 billion deal for Celgene.
Shares of Bristol-Myers jumped 4.3%. Shares of Beyond Meat Inc BYND.O rose 2.6% after Yum
Brands Inc YUM.N said it will be testing Beyond Meat's
plant-based nuggets at an Atlanta KFC restaurant.