Stock market live today: New quarter, Dow futures drop 200 points, reopening plays down premarket

Finance news

The front facade of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is seen in New York City, New York, U.S., June 26, 2020.

Brendan McDermid | Reuters

This is a live blog. Please check back for updates. 

8:02 am: Reopening names down in premarket after eight states report record cases

Stocks popular among investors betting on the reopening of the U.S. economy slid in premarket trading after eight states reported all-time highs of Covid-19 cases on Tuesday. Fears that government will be forced to re-impose strict distancing and travel limitation hit stocks of travel and retail stocks especially hard. Airlines including American Airlines (down 2%) and car-rental company Avis (down 2.2%) comprised some of the biggest laggards before the bell. Cruise-line operator Carnival retreated 2.4% while retailers Kohl’s and Gap lost 2.8% and 1%, respectively. — Franck

7:59 am: Second quarter best in decades

U.S. equities wrapped up their best quarter in decades on Tuesday as markets recovered from the historic sell-off triggered by the coronavirus. The Dow gained 17.8% in the second quarter, posting its best quarter since 1987, while the S&P 500 finished the period with a near 20% gain, its best since 1998. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite soared 30.6% for the quarter, the most since 1999. The Nasdaq was the first of the major averages to make back all of its coronavirus losses.— Fitzgerald 

7:52 am: Senate passes extension for PPP

The Senate agreed to extend the Paycheck Protection Program through Aug. 8 just hours before the program was set to expire. About $660 billion has been approved for use in the program, with about $130 billion remaining. Sen. Marco Rubio, the Florida Republican who is chairman of the Small Business Committee, said on Twitter that “what we really need to pass very soon is targeted help for those who need a second round of aid.” —Pound, Associated Press

7:51 am: ADP expected to show 2.5 million private payrolls added in June

Economists expect the ADP private sector jobs report to show 2.5 million payrolls were added in June. The 8:15 a.m. ET report is viewed as a preview of sorts for the government’s employment report, which is due Thursday morning. The government report is expected to show that 2.9 million jobs were created in June, up from the 2.5 million in May, according to Dow Jones. The ADP number does not correlate with government data many times. For May, ADP showed a decline of 2.76 million jobs.  Economists had expected a substantial 8 million decline in May payrolls, and were surprised by the gain. — Domm

7:50 am: FedEx shares jump after earnings beat, JPMorgan upgrade

Shares of FedEx jumped more than 11% during premarket trading after the company’s fourth quarter results beat analyst estimates on the top and bottom line as consumers flocked online amid the pandemic. Separately, JPMorgan upgraded shares to an overweight rating, based on the company’s ability to hike prices.

CNBC PRO subscribers can read more about the firm’s bull case here. – Stevens

7:35 am: New quarter, Dow futures sink 200 points 

In the first trading day of the third quarter, U.S. equity futures ticked lower and pointed to losses at the open on Wednesday. Dow futures dropped about 220 points, or 0.9%. S&P 500 futures fell 0.6% and Nasdaq-100 futures slid 0.4%. 

On Tuesday, the Dow climbed 217 points, or 0.85%, to close out the best quarter for stocks in decades. The S&P rallied 1.54% and the Nasdaq Composite closed up 1.9%. — Fitzgerald

— with reporting from CNBC’s Patti Domm. 

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