Intel Nasdaq Lead Futures Higher; This China Name Poised To Breakout

Chips and China names led stock futures higher ahead of Friday's open, as currency moves and earnings reports stirred early trade.

XNasdaq 100 futures led the premarket session, rising almost 0.6% as Intel (INTC) and China's JD.com (JD) posting the strongest early moves.

Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average rose nearly 3%, with Intel and Nike (NKE) doing the heavy early lifting.

S&P 500 and Russell 2000 futures climbed 0.4% apiece.

Stocks head into Friday's session with the Dow up 1.2%, and the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq each holding 1% gains.

The dollar staged a mild rebound early Friday, after President Trump, speaking in Davos, walked back some of Treasury Secretary Mnuchin's 'weak dollar' comments that had unnerved currency markets earlier in the week.The Bloomberg Dolar Index continued to trade at its lowest mark in more than three years.

Friday is not a big day for economic news, but markets could see some effect from the Commerce Department's initial estimates on fourth-quarter GDP growth, due out at 8:30 a.m.ET.

Intel Flexes, Starbucks Spills; JD.com Geared For Breakout

Intel powered ahead more than 5% on the heels of its fourth-quarter report, a clean beat that included a dividend increase and an upgraded outlook. The stock has been struggling since news of security lapses affected nearly all of its products made over the past five years. The news killed a breakout attempt and sent the stock lower in early January. The stock has been fighting to hold support at its 10-week moving average.

Apple (AAPL) climbed 0.8% in premarket trade, while Netflix (NFLX) led the FANG stock tech leaders with a 0.9% gain.

Many China names were moving higher after the Hong Kong market ended a strong week. Alibaba Group Holdings (BABA) and Weibo (WB) traded up more than 1%. Online retail giant JD.com gained nearly 2%, implying an early breakout above a 47.50 buy point. Not all premarket moves carry over into regular trade.

Intuitive Surgical dropped 3% in early action, despite fourth-quarter revenue and earnings well above analyst forecasts. But the late Thursday report also showed a $318 million charge related to reformed U.S. tax rules. Intuitive ended Thursday 11% above a 405.15 buy point in a flat base.

Starbucks (SBUX) dropped more than 5%. The Coffee-shop chain's late Thursday report beat on earnings, missed on revenue and guided 2018 earnings above consensus views. Founder and Chief Executive Howard Schultz chatted up the future of cryptocurrencies during the conference call with investors.

Starbucks shares have been fighting to hold above a 59.93 buy point in a seven-month saucer-with-handle base.

Etrade Financial (ETFC) slumped almost 4% after announcing mixed fourth-quarter results and plans to acquire one million retail brokerage accounts from Capital One FinancialCOF for $170 million. Etrade shares have been trading tight, near highs and up 18% from a December breakout.

Global Stock Markets: China, France Rally, Tokyo Slips

Asia's stock markets were sharply mixed on Friday, with Tokyo's Nikkei 225 slipping 0.2% as the dollar continued its dive vs. the yen. In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index powered up 1.5% — apparently helped by a Morgan Stanley report that boosted price targets on China's banks, due to higher net interest margins and improved asset quality, according to the South China Morning Post.

The Nikkei 225 ended the week down 0.7%. The Hang Seng finished up 2.8% in a seventh straight weekly gain.

European markets were chopping out uneven gains near midday, with the CAC-40 in Paris up rallying 0.9% and London's FTSE 100 ahead 0.4%, while Frankfurt's DAX clung to a fractional gain.

Other Important Market News For Friday:

The Big Picture: Blue Chips Advance, But Breakouts Sparse

3 Lessons From Today's Volatile Action

3 China Names In Buy Range: Can You Find The Strengths, Flaws?

Intel Beats Fourth-Quarter Targets, Offers Cheery 2018 Outlook

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