Wall Street Seen Rising; Oil Prices Ease
October 04, 2004 09:02:00 AM ET
By Michael Flaherty
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks were set to open higher on Monday, extending Friday's rally, with oil prices sliding and investor sentiment improved as the flow of quarterly earnings reports begins this week.
Shares of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT), the world's largest retailer, could face pressure after it said sales at stores open at least a year rose 2.3 percent for September, near the low end of expectations, according to its preliminary tally.
Another stock in the spotlight was business software company Siebel Systems Inc. (SEBL). Siebel said it sees third-quarter revenue above Wall Street expectations. Shares of Siebel surged $1.70, or 20.7 percent, to $9.89 on the INET electronic brokerage.
S&P 500 futures were up 6.20 points, above fair value accounting for interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract, indicating the market would open higher.
Dow Jones industrial index futures jumped 63 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures rose 12 points.
On Friday, the Nasdaq hit a 3-month high, while the Dow (.DJI closed up 112 points.
``Going into the third-quarter earnings season, the sentiment is a little less cautious,'' said Kevin Baker, a market analyst at Commerzbank in London. Baker added that oil prices, though still high, appear to be stabilizing around the $50 a barrel level.
Crude prices eased on Monday after rebels in Nigeria withdrew a threat to target oil operations.
U.S. light crude fell 57 cents to $49.55 in electronic trading.
Stock markets rallied in Asia and Europe on Monday, with shares in Europe hitting 5-month highs. Tokyo's Nikkei ended up 2.68 percent, its biggest one-day rise in four months.
Shares of software maker PeopleSoft Inc. (PSFT) will also be eyed after the company said on Monday third-quarter revenue would exceed Wall Street expectations. PeopleSoft's stock fell 55 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $22.28 before the market opened on the INET electronic brokerage system.
Economic data issued last week encouraged investors. A government report showed U.S. gross domestic product expanded in the second quarter at an annual 3.3 percent, more than previously estimated. The Institute for Supply Management said on Friday that its index showed that growth at U.S. factories decelerated slightly in September but was above 50, indicating the factory sector continued to grow.
In other corporate news, XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (XMSR) fell $1.36, or 4.41 percent, to $29.50 on INET. On Friday, the subscription satellite radio service said it added more than 415,000 new customers in the third quarter.
Retailer RadioShack Corp. (RSH) said it will take over operation of cell phone and accessory kiosks at 542 Sam's Club stores, a move that would add to earnings in 2006.
On the economic front, U.S. August factory orders are due at 10 a.m. from the Commerce Department. Economists surveyed by Reuters expected a 0.1 percent rise on average.
© 2004 Reuters
