[BRIEFING.COM] Equity indices enter the afternoon session at their best marks of the day. The S&P 500 is sporting a gain of 0.4% while the Nasdaq hovers just a tick above its unchanged mark.

According to Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), the Senate will take up the plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act without an immediate replacement should it pass the motion to move forward on the health-care debate this afternoon. The latest reports indicate that the GOP has a chance to pass today's motion to proceed, but still lacks the required votes to pass health-care reform legislation.

The health care sector currently trades at the bottom of the leaderboard with a loss of 0.8%.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages have not changed since the last update.

Crude oil has extended its gain to 3.0% late this morning, rallying for the second day in a row. There haven't been any new headlines since yesterday's news that Saudi Arabia will curb its exports next month, but the commodity has moved above its 50-day simple moving average ($46.52/bbl) after seeing resistance at the key technical level on Monday. WTI crude currently trades at a price of $47.71/bbl.

Unsurprisingly, the energy sector (+1.7%), which typically moves in tandem with the price of crude oil, trades at the top of the leaderboard. A win today would break the sector's three-session losing streak.

[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks have ticked up in recent action, pushing the S&P 500 (+0.4%) to its best mark of the day.

Alphabet (GOOGL 969.20, -29.13) has dropped 2.9% in today's session following last night's earnings release. The tech giant beat both top and bottom line estimates, but some investors expressed concerns about the company's rising traffic acquisition costs (TAC), which increased 28.0% from the year earlier. Still, today's sell off is more than likely the result of some profit taking on the heels of the company's recent three-week run. GOOGL shares added 8.6% from July 5 to July 24.

The top-weighted technology sector (-0.1%) has struggled today amid Alphabet's negative performance, but still trades atop the July leaderboard with a month-to-date gain of 5.7%.

[BRIEFING.COM] Commodities are beginning the day higher:

• Overall, commodities, as measured by the Bloomberg Commodity Index, are currently up 0.45% at 83.0191
• Dollar index is currently down 0.01% at 93.97
• Looking at energy...
  • Oil prices saw strength overnight and have continued their rally this morning, 
  • Sept WTI crude oil futures are now up $1.04 at $47.38/barrel
• In other energy,
  • August natural gas is up $0.025 at $2.924/MMBtu
• Moving on to metals...
  • Aug gold is down $3.30 at $1251.00/oz, while Sept silver is down $0.027 at $16.47/oz
  • Sept copper is up $0.0825 at $2.819/lb
• In agriculture...
  • Sept corn futures are down $0.065 at 3.8425/bu
  • November soy futures are down $0.0875 at 10.0125/bu
  • Sept wheat futures are down $0.04 at 4.7975

[BRIEFING.COM] Equity indices have continued trending sideways near their opening marks. The S&P 500 sports a gain of 0.3% while the Nasdaq (-0.1%) underperforms.

The heavily-weighted financial sector (+1.2%) is trading comfortably ahead of the broader market this morning after Citigroup (C 67.86, +1.76) issued loftier projections for its long-term profitability at its first investor day since before the Great Recession. C shares have jumped 2.6% to a fresh two-week high.

A steepening of the yield curve has also helped bolster financials' positive performance today. Treasuries are lower across the curve with the heaviest selling taking place at the back end; the 10-yr yield is up five basis points at 2.31% while the 2-yr yield is higher by just one basis point at 1.38%.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages continue to trade mixed in the opening minutes.

Just in, the consumer confidence reading for July rose to 121.1 from the prior month's revised reading of 117.3 (from 118.9). The Briefing.com consensus expected the survey to hit 116.8.

[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages open Tuesday's session mixed; the S&P 500 and the Dow hold gains of 0.3% and 0.6%, respectively, while the Nasdaq shows a loss of 0.1%.

More than half of the S&P 500's eleven sectors are trading in the green with the financials (+1.4%), energy (+1.7%), and materials (+1.1%) groups pacing the advance. On the flip side, the top-weighted technology sector (-0.5%) is the weakest performer as Alphabet (GOOGL 968.04, -30.72) weighs, dropping 3.0%.

Within the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Caterpillar (CAT 112.68, +4.52) and McDonald's (MCD 158.82, +6.94) are the top performers, adding 4.4% apiece, following their latest earnings reports. Both companies beat top and bottom line estimates.

The stock market is poised to open Tuesday's session in the green following another generally positive batch of earnings reports. The S&P 500 futures currently trade nine points, or 0.3%, above fair value.

Earnings season is in full swing this morning with five Dow components having reported their quarterly results. Four of the five--McDonald's (MCD 156.09, +4.24), Caterpillar (CAT 113.89, +5.71), DuPont (DD 85.70, +1.35), and United Technologies (UTX 122.00, -1.13)--beat earnings per share estimates while 3M (MMM 204.50, -5.50) came up just short.

In addition, Alphabet (GOOGL 967.26, -31.05) reported better than expected earnings and revenues on Monday evening, but the company has slipped 3.2% in the wake of the report. However, it's important to note that today's slide comes on the heels of a three-week rally for the company, suggesting that the positive news was already priced in.

Many more earnings reports have crossed the wires between yesterday's close and today's open, too many to list here. Be sure to check out Briefing.com's earnings calendar. 

Crude oil is up 2.0% at $47.26/bbl, which marks a multi-month high for the commodity. Today's advance comes on the heels of yesterday's announcement that Saudi Arabia will limit its oil exports to 6.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in August. In addition, Nigeria, which was originally exempt from the OPEC-led production cut agreement, committed to capping its oil production at 1.8 million bpd.

U.S. Treasuries are trading lower once again today, extending Monday's modest losses; the benchmark 10-yr yield is four basis points higher at 2.30%. The FOMC will kick off a two-day meeting in Washington this morning with its latest policy directive due tomorrow afternoon at 14:00 ET.

On the data front, the FHFA Housing Price Index for May rose 0.4%, while the Briefing.com consensus expected an increase of 0.7%. The prior month's reading was revised to 0.6% (from 0.7%).

Separately, the May Case-Shiller 20-city Index hit 5.7%, which is in line with the Briefing.com consensus. The prior month's reading was left unrevised at 5.7%.

Today's last economic report--the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for July (Briefing.com consensus 116.8)--will be released at 10:00 ET.

Also of note, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX 9.14, -0.29, -3.1%), often referred to as the "investor fear gauge", is trading at its lowest level since December 1993.

The S&P 500 futures trade seven points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region capped a range-bound Tuesday affair with a mixed finish. China's Central Committee Political Bureau noted that the country will seek economic progress while maintaining stability during the second half of 2017. The Politburo will also focus on stabilizing the real estate market and curbing local government debt growth. South Korea's Finance Ministry raised South Korea's GDP forecast for 2017 to 3.0% from 2.6% due in part to stronger than expected exports. Elsewhere, the minutes from the latest Bank of Japan policy meeting acknowledged that financial conditions were highly accommodative.

• Economic data was limited:
  • South Korea's July Consumer Confidence 111 (last 111)

---Equity Markets---

• Japan's Nikkei shed 0.1%. Showa Denko, Toshiba, Nippon Paper, Olympus, J Front Retailing, Dentsu, Yokohama Rubber, Konami, and Bridgestone posted losses between 1.0% and 5.6%. On the upside, SUMCO, NGK Insulators, Dainippon Screen Manufacturing, Tokyo Electron, and Konica Minolta gained between 0.5% and 2.6%.
• Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled just above its flat line with select financials showing relative strength. HSBC spiked 2.3% while Hang Seng Bank, China Construction Bank, and ICBC added between 0.2% and 0.6%. On the downside, consumer names like China Mengniu Dairy and Want Want China lost 3.1% and 1.3%, respectively. Geely Automobile fell 1.2%.
• China's Shanghai Composite slipped 0.2%. Zhejiang Xinan Chemical, Zhongchang Bigdata, China Railway Hi-tech Industry, Tibet Urban Development & Investment, Fujian Cement, and Fujian Expressway Development lost between 3.4% and 5.1%.
• India's Sensex shed 0.1%. Lupin, Tata Motors, Coal India, and Sun Pharma lost between 0.8% and 2.0% while tech consultants were mixed. Wipro fell 0.7% while Infosys added 0.3% and Tata Consultancy rose 1.5%. Financials ended in the green with HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI, and AXIS Bank rising between 0.3% and 1.9%.

Major European indices trade on a higher note with Spain's IBEX (+1.2%) setting the pace. Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan said the franc remains significantly overvalued, which makes it difficult for balance sheet-related maneuvering. Greece's first debt offering since 2013, a five-year bond, has reportedly received EUR7 billion in offers. Germany's Ifo Business Climate Index climbed to a post-reunification high.

• In economic data:
  • Germany's July Ifo Business Climate 116.0 (expected 144.9; last 115.2). July Current Assessment 125.4 (expected 123.8; last 124.2) and July Business Expectations 107.3 (expected 106.5; last 106.8). June Import Price Index -1.1% month-over-month (expected -0.7%; last -1.0%); +2.5% year-over-year (consensus 2.9%; last 4.1%)
  • UK's July CBI Industrial Trends Orders 10 (expected 11; last 16)
  • France's June PPI -0.4% month-over-month (last -0.6%) and July Business Survey 109 (expected 108; last 109)
  • Italy's May Industrial New Orders +4.3% month-over-month (last -0.5%); +13.7% year-over-year (consensus -2.2%). May Industrial Sales +1.5% month-over-month (last -0.4%); +7.6% year-over-year (last 4.1%)
  • Spain's PPI +3.2% year-over-year (last 5.3%)

---Equity Markets---

• Germany's DAX is higher by 0.6% with all but three names in the green. Financials lead with Allianz, Deutsche Boerse, Commerzbank, and Deutsche Bank up between 1.3% and 2.3%. Heavyweights like Siemens, Continental, Merck, and Bayer show gains between 0.6% and 1.0% while automakers BMW and Volkswagen are both down near 0.5%.
• UK's FTSE trades up 0.8% amid broad strength. Miners and select financials have paced the advance with Anglo American, Antofagasta, Glencore, Rio Tinto rising between 2.4% and 5.2% while Standard Chartered, HSBC, Barclays, RBS, Standard Life, Prudential, and RSA Insurance show gains between 1.3% and 2.5%.
• France's CAC has climbed 1.1%. Credit Agricole, Societe Generale, AXA, and BNP Paribas outperform with gains between 1.5% and 2.4% while consumer stocks like Pernod Ricard, Accor, L'Oreal, and Danone are up between 1.0% and 1.7%. TechnipFMC has plunged 8.2% after discovering accounting errors in its latest quarterly report.
• Spain's IBEX outperforms with a gain of 1.2% amid strength in bank names. Banco Sabadell, Bankia, BBVA, Caixabank, Santander, and Bankinter show gains between 2.1% and 3.1%.

The S&P 500 futures currently trade seven points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

Earnings season is in full swing this morning with five Dow components having already reported their quarterly results. Four of the five--McDonald's (MCD 156.50, +4.65), Caterpillar (CAT 113.91, +5.73), DuPont (DD 85.30, +0.95), and United Technologies (UTX 121.40, -1.73)--beat earnings per share estimates while 3M (MMM 204.00, -6.00) came up just short. 

In addition, Alphabet (GOOGL 970.99, -27.32) reported better than expected earnings and revenues on Monday evening, but the company has slipped 2.8% in the wake of the report. However, it's important to note that today's slide comes on the heels of a three-week rally for the company, suggesting that the positive news was already priced in.

Equity indices look poised to open Tuesday's session in positive territory as the S&P 500 futures trade six points, or 0.2%, above fair value.

The Senate will vote on the motion to proceed to debate health-care reform today. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) will be in Washington for the vote despite undergoing surgery and being diagnosed with brain cancer just last week. Mr. McCain's presence will make passage a little easier for the GOP--which can only afford to lose two votes--as he is expected to vote in favor of the motion.

Elsewhere in the nation's capital, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will kick off its two-day policy meeting this morning with its latest rate-hike decision crossing the wires tomorrow afternoon. The Fed is not expected to raise rates, but investors will be interested to hear what Fed Chair Janet Yellen has to say about reducing the central bank's massive balance sheet.

Crude oil is up 1.7% at $47.12/bbl, which marks a multi-month high for the commodity. Today's advance comes on the heels of yesterday's announcement that Saudi Arabia will limit its oil exports to 6.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in August. In addition, Nigeria, which was originally exempt from the OPEC-led production cut agreement, committed to capping its oil production at 1.8 million bpd.

U.S. Treasuries are trading lower once again today, extending Monday's modest losses; the benchmark 10-yr yield is two basis points higher at 2.27%. Meanwhile, the U.S. Dollar Index (93.78, -0.04) is unchanged, hovering near a 14-month low.

On the data front, investors will receive the May FHFA Housing Price Index (Briefing.com consensus 0.7%) at 9:00 ET, the May S&P 500 Case-Shiller Home Price Index (Briefing.com consensus 5.7%) at 9:00 ET, and the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for July at 10:00 ET.

In U.S. corporate news:

• Alphabet (GOOGL 972.50, -25.81): -2.6% despite beating top and bottom line estimates. 
• Caterpillar (CAT 113.18, +5.00): +4.6% after reporting above-consensus earnings/revenues and providing upbeat guidance. 
• McDonald's (MCD 154.55, +2.70): +1.8% after reporting better than expected earnings and revenues. 
• 3M (MMM 204.00, -6.00): -2.9% after missing bottom-line estimates.
• Biogen (BIIB 297.50, +12.80): +4.5% after reporting better than expected earnings/revenues and raising its earnings guidance for FY17. 

Reviewing overnight developments:

• Equity indices in the Asia-Pacific region capped a range-bound Tuesday affair with a mixed finish. Japan's Nikkei -0.1%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng unch, China's Shanghai Composite -0.2%, India's Sensex -0.1%.
  • In economic data:
    • South Korea's July Consumer Confidence 111 (last 111)
  • In news:
    • China's Central Committee Political Bureau noted that the country will seek economic progress while maintaining stability during the second half of 2017. The Politburo will also focus on stabilizing the real estate market and curbing local government debt growth.
    • South Korea's Finance Ministry raised South Korea's GDP forecast for 2017 to 3.0% from 2.6% due in part to stronger than expected exports.
    • The minutes from the latest Bank of Japan policy meeting acknowledged that financial conditions were highly accommodative.

• Major European indices trade on a higher note with Spain's IBEX setting the pace. Germany's DAX +0.6%, UK's FTSE +1.0%, France's CAC +1.2%, Spain's IBEX +1.5%.
  • In economic data:
    • Germany's July Ifo Business Climate 116.0 (expected 144.9; last 115.2). July Current Assessment 125.4 (expected 123.8; last 124.2) and July Business Expectations 107.3 (expected 106.5; last 106.8). June Import Price Index -1.1% month-over-month (expected -0.7%; last -1.0%); +2.5% year-over-year (consensus 2.9%; last 4.1%)
    • UK's July CBI Industrial Trends Orders 10 (expected 11; last 16)
    • France's June PPI -0.4% month-over-month (last -0.6%) and July Business Survey 109 (expected 108; last 109)
    • Italy's May Industrial New Orders +4.3% month-over-month (last -0.5%); +13.7% year-over-year (consensus -2.2%). May Industrial Sales +1.5% month-over-month (last -0.4%); +7.6% year-over-year (last 4.1%)
    • Spain's PPI +3.2% year-over-year (last 5.3%)
  • In news:
    • Swiss National Bank President Thomas Jordan said the franc remains significantly overvalued, which makes it difficult for balance sheet-related maneuvering.
    • Greece's first debt offering since 2013, a five-year bond, has reportedly received EUR7 billion in offers.
    • Germany's Ifo Business Climate Index climbed to a post-reunification high.

[BRIEFING.COM] Equities opened the week with a mixed performance; the Nasdaq (+0.4%) finished at another record close, its fourth in the last five sessions, while the S&P 500 (-0.1%) and the Dow (-0.3%) settled with modest losses. Monday's action was fairly range-bound with the benchmark index staying true to a seven-point range from start to finish.

Investors understandably lacked conviction on Monday ahead of several notable events on this week's calendar, including:

• a Senate vote on health-care reform, which President Trump says will take place on Tuesday
• the Fed's latest policy directive, which will cross the wires at 14:00 ET on Wednesday
• the advance estimate for second-quarter GDP, which will be released at 8:30 ET on Friday
• and a slew of influential earnings reports that will be delivered throughout the week 

The cautious sentiment was present in pre-market action on Monday morning, leaving the major averages modestly lower at the opening bell. Nine of eleven sectors finished in negative territory with the two advancers being the top-weighted technology (+0.3%) and financials (+0.3%) groups.

Financials exhibited relative strength throughout the session while tech stocks took a while to come around. In the end, the positive performances of mega-cap tech names like Apple (AAPL 152.09, +1.82), Facebook (FB 166.00, +1.57), and Alphabet (GOOGL 998.31, +4.47) were enough to push the tech sector to victory. Chipmakers underperformed, leaving the PHLX Semiconductor Index lower by 0.4%. 

As for the declining sectors, they finished with losses ranging between 0.1% and 1.0%. The telecom services (-1.0%) and utilities (-0.9%) groups were the weakest performers while the remaining laggards finished with losses of no more than 0.4%.

The consumer discretionary sector (-0.4%) underperformed following a negative reaction on the earnings front. Hasbro (HAS 105.00, -10.95) dropped 9.4% after concerns surrounding economic conditions overseas overshadowed the company's better than expected earnings. Similarly, Stanley Black & Decker (SWK 143.70, -3.09) slipped 2.1% despite beating top and bottom line estimates.

In addition, Hibbett Sports (HIBB 13.10, -6.60) plunged 33.5% after the company issued a profit warning, saying that it expects comparable-store sales to drop around 10.0% in the second quarter. Peer Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS 35.12, -2.04) also sold off following the announcement, dropping 5.5%.

Crude oil jumped 1.3% to $46.36/bbl on Monday following news that Saudi Arabia will limit its oil exports to 6.6 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, nearly one million bpd below the level it produced a year ago. In addition, Nigeria, which was originally exempt from the OPEC-led production cut agreement, has pledged to limit its exports to 1.8 million barrels per day.

However, the energy sector, which typically moves in tandem with crude oil, lost 0.3%. Halliburton (HAL 42.51, -1.87) weighed on the sector, dropping 4.2%, after saying that North American customers are 'tapping the brakes'. However, the company did beat top and bottom line estimates.

In the bond market, U.S. Treasuries settled the day with modest losses. The benchmark 10-yr yield, which moves inversely to the price of the 10-yr Treasury note, climbed one basis point to 2.25%.

Reviewing Monday's economic data, which was limited to June Existing Home Sales:

• Existing home sales for June decreased 1.8% from May to an annualized rate of 5.52 million units while the Briefing.com consensus expected a reading of 5.58 million. The prior month's reading was left unrevised at 5.62 million.
  • The key takeaway from the report is that neither the availability nor the affordability of homes is high, which is keeping sales activity from being all that it could be otherwise.

On Tuesday, investors will receive the May FHFA Housing Price Index (Briefing.com consensus 0.7%) at 9:00 ET, the May S&P 500 Case-Shiller Home Price Index (Briefing.com consensus 5.7%) at 9:00 ET, and the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for July at 10:00 ET.

In addition, several notable companies will report earnings on Tuesday morning, including 3M (MMM 210.00, -1.16), McDonald's (MCD 151.85, -2.07), United Technologies (UTX 123.13, -0.36), DuPont (DD 84.35, -0.19), and Caterpillar (CAT 108.18, +1.59), among many others.

• Nasdaq Composite +19.1% YTD
• S&P 500 +10.3% YTD
• Dow Jones Industrial Average +8.9% YTD
• Russell 2000 +6.0% YTD