5 things to know before the stock market opens Wednesday

Here are the most important news, trends and analysis that investors need to start their trading day:

  • Dow futures turn negative, giving up earlier gains of 200 points
  • Senate to begin debate soon on $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill
  • U.S. will have enough Covid vaccines for 'every adult' by end of May
  • America's biggest firms push for path to citizenship for 'Dreamers'
  • Stocks to watch: Rocket Companies, Las Vegas Sands, Oscar Health

1. Dow futures turn negative, giving up earlier gains of 200 points

The Dow is set to drop at Wednesday's open, with futures erasing earlier gains of 200 points as bond yield moved higher. Late-session selling reversed a strong rally Tuesday as well. Coming off heir best days since November, the 30-stock average fell 0.5% on Tuesday and the Nasdaq dropped 1.7% as tech stocks pulled back. The S&P 500 slid 0.8%, a day after its biggest one-day advance since June.

U.S. companies added a disappointing 117,000 new jobs in February, according the latest ADP private sector employment report. Economists had expected gains of 225,000 positions. January's additions were upwardly revised to 195,000. The ADP lately has not been the best predictor of the government's monthly jobs report, which comes out Friday.

2. Senate to begin debate soon on $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill

The Senate is expected to start debate as soon as Wednesday on its version of the House-passed, $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill. However, it excludes a federal minimum wage boost to $15 per hour. President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged Democrats to stand united and approve the measure, even as some party moderates sought to dial back parts of the package. Democrats, with the slimmest of margins in the Senate, are using special rules that would allow them to pass the bill without GOP support.

3. U.S. will have enough Covid vaccines for 'every adult' by end of May

The U.S. will have a large enough supply of coronavirus vaccines to inoculate every adult in America by the end of May, two months earlier than expected, Biden said Tuesday. The announcement came as the administration works to increase production of Johnson & Johnson's newly cleared single-shot vaccine, and rival Merck agrees to pitch in.

The Republican governors of Texas and Mississippi announced Tuesday that they're lifting mask mandates in their states and allowing businesses to reopen at full capacity even as the decline in new daily Covid cases slows. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky on Monday warned states against lifting public health restrictions too quickly.

4. America's biggest firms push for path to citizenship for 'Dreamers'

America's biggest companies are urging Congress to establish a permanent path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. In a letter Wednesday, a coalition of more than 100 companies and trade associations — including Facebook, General Motors, Marriott, Target, Visa and Uber — asked Senate leaders Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to pass the bipartisan Dream Act of 2021. The move comes as Biden and Democrats on Capitol Hill look to immigration as a major legislative priority.

5. Stocks to watch: Rocket Companies, Las Vegas Sands, Oscar Health

Rocket Companies fell 6% in Wednesday's premarket after more than doubling over the past three sessions. On Tuesday, the Quicken Loans and Rocket Mortgage parent surged over 71% on no apparent news. The heavily shorted stock appears to have garnered bullish interest from day traders on Reddit's WallStreetBets forum.

Casino operator Las Vegas Sands said Wednesday it will sell its Vegas real estate and operations to private equity giant Apollo Global Management for about $6.25 billion. The properties include the Venetian Resort Las Vegas and the Sands Expo and Convention Center. Shares of Las Vegas Sands were up almost 3% in the premarket. Apollo fell nearly 1%.

Oscar Health is set to debut Wednesday on the New York Stock Exchange. The health insurance start-up backed by Google-parent Alphabet priced its initial public offering Tuesday evening at $39 per share, above the already-raised expected range of $36 to $38. The IPO gives Oscar Health a market value of $7.7 billion ahead of trading.

— Follow all the developments on Wall Street in real time with CNBC Pro's live markets blog. Get the latest on the pandemic with our coronavirus blog.

Source: Read Full Article