Premarket: 6 things to know before the bell
1. Brexit talks begin: Negotiators from the U.K. and European Union are meeting in Brussels on Monday for the first round of divorce talks.
The two parties have until March 2019 to settle a thorny set of issues related to trade and migration.
Business and investors want clarity about the terms of Brexit as soon as possible, because they need to know what kind of access U.K. companies will have to Europe’s vast free trading area in future.
Prime Minister Theresa May enters talks in a precarious position: Her party has lost its majority in parliament and her negotiating plan is under fire.
May has called for a clean break from the EU, which would allow the U.K. to control immigration from the EU. Others say the economy should be given priority.
2. Macron wins big: French President Emmanuel Macron scored a major victory in the second round of parliamentary elections on Sunday.
The main stock index in Paris opened more than 1% higher on Monday after voters gave Macron’s centrist party a majority in parliament.
The result should help accelerate Macron’s ambitious economic reform agenda.
However, very low turnout suggests Macron might still face public opposition over some of his labor reforms.
3. White House tech summit: President Trump’s American Technology Council is set to meet for the first time on Monday. Representatives from Apple (AAPL, Tech30), Amazon (AMZN, Tech30), Alphabet (GOOGL, Tech30), Cisco (CSCO, Tech30), Oracle (ORCL, Tech30) and Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) are expected to attend.
Trump said he wants the council to help the government “transform and modernize” its tech.
Some of the biggest names in the industry will be missing. Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk quit two of the president’s business advisory councils after Trump withdrew from the Paris climate deal, and embattled Uber CEO Travis Kalanick left over the president’s immigration plan in February.
4. Global market overview: U.S. stock futures were higher early Monday.
European markets gained around 1% at the open. Asian markets ended the session higher.
U.S. crude futures were trading 0.4% lower early on Monday, dropping below $ 45 per barrel.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.1% on Friday, while the S&P 500 was flat. The Nasdaq closed 0.2% lower.
Before the Bell newsletter: Key market news. In your inbox. Subscribe now!
5. Economics & companies: New York Fed President William Dudley is holding a roundtable with businesses at 8 a.m. ET in Plattsburgh, NY.
Japan posted a surprise trade deficit on Monday because of stronger demand from emerging markets.
Aircraft maker Lockheed Martin (LMT) said it is nearing a massive deal to sell 440 of its F-35 fighter jets to 11 nations, including the U.S. The deal includes all three variations of the sophisticated F-35 Lightning II jet, a Lockheed spokesman said Monday.
Download CNN MoneyStream for up-to-the-minute market data and news
6. Coming this week:
Monday — Brexit divorce talks start; Paris air show
Tuesday — FedEx (FDX), Adobe (ADBE) earnings; Paris air show; Jack Ma hosts two-day event for U.S. small businesses in Detroit
Wednesday — Oracle earnings; U.S. housing market data; U.S. crude inventories data; U.K. parliament opening; Paris air show
Thursday — Barnes and Noble (BKS), Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY), Accenture (ACN) earnings; Initial jobless claims report; EU consumer confidence data; Central Bank of Mexico rate decision; EU leaders summit; Facebook community event
Friday — BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30) earnings; EU summit
