Global stocks rise as investors wait for a wave of earnings

Global stocks and US equity futures edged higher on Monday, as investors expected a busy week of corporate earnings, economic data and central bank decisions.

S&P 500-linked futures rose 0.1% after the benchmark stock gauge posted its biggest loss in a week since late October. The US stock and bond markets are closed Monday for Martin Luther King Day.

Inventories have faltered in recent days after a good start to the year fueled by hopes of a vaccine-led economic recovery that could be bolstered by further fiscal stimulus under the incoming administration. Although many investors expect the rally to continue, they say stocks are likely to remain bumpy in the weeks to come, as signs that high rates of coronavirus cases hurt economic activity.

“The markets are sort of at the forefront of the recovery and normalization of economic activity,” said Agnès Belaisch, chief European strategist at the Barings Investment Institute. Stocks are bound to pause intermittently given the disconnect between the market and how the Covid-19 restrictions are hampering economic recovery, she said.

This week, investors will analyze the quarterly results of dozens of leading companies, including JB Hunt Transport Services, UnitedHealth Group, and Intel, for advice on the earnings and income outlook during 2021. The Bank’s monetary policy decisions European Central and Bank of Japan are also available, as well as polls that will give an indication of business activity at the start of the year and the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.