September S&P 500 futures (ESU23) are up +0.21%, and September Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU23) are up +0.42% this morning as market participants braced for the next raft of economic data and speeches by policymakers to gain insights into the outlook for the economy and interest rates, while hopes of more policy stimulus from China helped boost market sentiment.
In Monday’s trading session, the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 underperformed major benchmarks, pressured by a drop in communication services and technology stocks. Tesla Inc (TSLA) plunged more than -6% after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy. Also, Alphabet Inc (GOOGL) slid over -3% after UBS downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy. In addition, Carnival Corporation (CCL) slumped more than -7% and was the top percentage loser on the benchmark S&P 500 after the cruise operator reported another quarterly loss and posted a weaker-than-expected Q3 earnings outlook. On the positive side, PacWest Bancorp (PACW) climbed about +4% after Ares Management said it had acquired a $3.5 billion portfolio of specialty finance loans from the lender.
