Equity futures were pointing toward gains for the final trading day of the year as optimism increased about a trade deal between the U.S. and China.
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Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping talked over the phone on Sunday, and expressed willingness to strike a trade deal afterwards. The two leaders called a 90-day ceasefire in the trade war at the start of the month.
Dow Jones futures were rising by 0.9 percent. The S&P 500 added 0.8 percent and the Nasdaq Composite was up 1 percent.
In Asian markets on Monday, Hong Kong shares climbed over 1 percent, closing an otherwise bearish 2018 on a firm note.
In a shortened trading session, the Hang Seng index rose 1.3 percent, but lost 13.6 percent of its value for the year, the worst decline since 2011.
Trading for the year in China and Japan ended on Friday. China’s Shanghai Composite lost 24.6 percent for the year.
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Japan’s Nikkei declined 12 percent for the year. It was the Nikkei’s first annual decline since 2011.
In Europe, London’s FTSE opened lower by 0.02 percent and France’s CAC rose 0.6 percent. Germany’s DAX was closed, having ended the trading year on Friday losing 18-percent for the year.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | %Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 23062.4 | -76.42 | -0.33% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 2485.74 | -3.09 | -0.12% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 6584.5219 | +5.03 | +0.08% |
U.S. stocks on Friday closed out a wild week that saw stomach-churning gains and losses as investors weighed an array of concerns. Major averages snapped a three-week losing streak but remain down for the month.
Investors moved cautiously Friday as volatility has been one of the consistent features of markets lately. The VIX index, which tracks the volatility of the equity markets, remained at a multi-month high of nearly 30.
Among concerns weighing on investors were fears of more interest rate hikes, worries about global economic growth, prospects for continued U.S.-China trade conflict, a partial government shutdown and turmoil in the Trump administration.
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While all three major averages, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite, were up for the week, they are all down more than 9 percent so far this month, which has only one more trading day in it.
Friday’s action followed Thursday’s session in which stocks posted a stunning late-session rebound that saw a 865-point swing in the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average.
