Stocks were set to surge at Tuesday's Wall Street open, adding to the prior session's historic rally, as investors cheered the Bush administration's plan to recapitalize major banks: S&P futures vs fair value: +47.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +51.50.
Stocks surged Monday, with the Dow industrials soaring some 936 points, or 11%, marking the largest-ever point advance for the blue-chip index. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq also hit point-gain records.
Investors reacted to global efforts over the weekend and into Monday aimed at unfreezing credit markets and getting money flowing through the pipelines.
Treasury trading resumes following the Columbus Day holiday, and could give a good indication of whether all the recent interventions are working.
On Tuesday, the Bush administration announced plans to recapitalize U.S. banks in an effort to end the credit freeze that has slammed the global economy. Among the moves announced: a $250 billion investment in nine major banks and a plan for the the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. will back up new senior bank debt for three years.
In overseas trading, Japan's Nikkei, which was closed Monday, surged 14.2% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 3.2%. In Europe, London's FTSE is up 5.8%, Germany's Dax is up 5.5% and France's CAC is up 5.5%.
Soft drink maker PepsiCo reported weaker-than-expected third-quarter earnings and said it would cut 3,300 jobs due to the global economic slowdown. Pepsi shares fell 3.8% in premarket trading.
Dow component Johnson & Johnson reported higher third-quarter earnings that beat expectations. J&J shares rose 5% in premarket trading.
Crude prices, meanwhile, stepped higher. Prices, which have plunged some 43% from the record $147.27 a barrel set on July 11, were up $3.21 at $84.40 a barrel early Tuesday.