OPENING CALL

Stock futures were little changed on Tuesday with consumer spending in focus, as a slew of earnings from retailers were due.

Expected results from Lowe's, Macy's, AutoZone and Urban Outfitters may give investors some new hints about how hot the economy is running.

Crypto prices, meanwhile, extended their gains on hopes that the SEC may soon approve exchange-traded funds to hold ether.

Overseas Markets

European and Asian indexes were largely lower. The Hang Seng Index slipped 2%.

Premarket Movers

Coinbase was up more than 2%.

JD.com said it plans to issue $1.5 billion or more of convertible bonds. ADRs fell about 5%.

Keysight Technologies fell 4.2% after saying it expects fiscal third-quarter adjusted earnings of between $1.30 and $1.36 a share on revenue of $1.18 billion to $1.2 billion, below analysts' projections.

Palo Alto Networks fell 8% after it issued a fourth-quarter forecast that underwhelmed investors.

Peloton Interactive fell 3.6%. The company said it had refinanced its debt, gaining access to nearly $1.4 billion in credit.

First-quarter adjusted earnings at Zoom Video Communications were better than expected. The company's forecast for second-quarter adjusted earnings, however, missed estimates. The stock was falling 2.5%.

Post Close Movers

Larimar Therapeutics said the FDA had lifted a partial clinical hold on the company's potential nerve disease Friedreich's Ataxia treatment. Shares rose 20%.

Nordson slashed its full-year guidance for adjusted profit and revenue, saying it now expects sales to be flat to up 2% from a year earlier. Shares fell 12%.

Watch For:

Canada CPI for April; Earnings from Lowe's, AutoZone, Toll Brothers, Amer Sports, Macy's, Urban Outfitters, XPeng

Today's Top Headlines/Must Reads:

- China Is Winning the Minerals War

- The Unlikely Stocks That Became a Hot Bet on AI

- CyberArk to Acquire Venafi for $1.5 Billion as Cyber Market Shows Signs of Recovery

MARKET WRAPS

Forex:

The dollar traded flat as moves in foreign exchange were modest in the absence of top-tier data and a continued lack of conviction on possible divergence in central bank policy outlook, MUFG said.

While there are differences in key central bank expectations, those differences aren't enough to fuel big forex moves, it added.

Major central banks are expected to cut by two to three times. Forex volatility should remain low unless the Federal Reserve revisits the prospect of interest rate hikes, MUFG said.

"We believe as long as global growth conditions do not deteriorate, the scope for the dollar to strengthen will remain limited."

Energy:

Oil prices declined as Fed officials remained cautious on the recent easing of inflation, prompting concerns that interest rates could stay higher for longer.

"Fed officials remain reluctant to declare victory over inflation, signaling a need for restrictive policy to continue for some time," IG said, adding that notes from the Fed's latest meeting on Wednesday could give more clarity on the path of rate cuts this year.

Metals:

Gold eased back, while silver jumped, riding the coattails of gold's fresh record yesterday.

Elsewhere, copper traded higher on mounting supply concerns and enthusiasm driven by the ongoing M&A activity around copper-producer Anglo American, Berenberg said.


TODAY'S TOP HEADLINES


Real-Estate Downsizing Finally Comes for Your Pharmacy

National drugstore chains, once resistant to the retail apocalypse that swept across the U.S., are finally succumbing to competition from online shopping and discount stores.

About 3,000 fewer drugstores were open for business at the start of this year compared with the same period in 2019, according to analytics company RetailStat, which tracks 15 pharmacy chains.


Samsung Electronics Appoints New Chief for Chip Business

Samsung Electronics has tapped a new chief for its semiconductor arm as it looks to boost its competitiveness in the chip industry amid the artificial-intelligence boom.

The South Korean technology conglomerate on Tuesday appointed Young Hyun Jun as the new head of its semiconductor business.


China Vanke Secures Fresh Loan

China Vanke has secured a fresh loan that takes its total borrowings this month to more than US$1 billion, part of the state-backed developer's ongoing efforts to temper liquidity pressures as it seeks to finish housing projects.

Vanke, one of China's few major developers yet to default in the country's ongoing property crisis, said in a stock-exchange filing Monday that it had obtained a loan for 1.2 billion yuan ($165.9 million) from Bank of China to use for development projects in Changzhou, a city in Jiangsu province.


AstraZeneca Targets $80 Billion Revenue by 2030 Through Pipeline Expansion

AstraZeneca has set out a target to grow revenue to $80 billion by 2030 as it aims to bolster its investment in technologies and platforms.

In a statement ahead of its investor day Tuesday the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant said it will develop 20 new medicines throughout the next six years and expects significant growth across all its therapy areas.


China's Youth Unemployment Eased in April

China's youth unemployment rate declined in April, in what will likely be welcome news for Beijing as it steps up policy support for the economy.

The jobless rate among China's 16- to 24-year-olds, excluding those enrolled in school, stood at 14.7% last month, down from March's 15.3%, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed this week.


Trump's Social-Media Account Posts Video Referencing a 'Unified Reich'

WASHINGTON-A video shared by a social-media account of Donald Trump referenced imaginary headlines and a "unified Reich" in the context of him winning the election in November.

The Trump campaign didn't immediately respond to a request for comment late Monday, but a spokeswoman told the Associated Press, "This was not a campaign video, it was created by a random account online and reposted by a staffer who clearly did not see the word, while the president was in court."


Trump Trial Helps Fuel His First Fundraising Win Over Biden

Being a defendant in Manhattan criminal court might be bad news for Donald Trump from a legal perspective. But it has been good for his campaign coffers.

On April 15, the start of Trump's New York hush-money trial, the former president's campaign raised more than $361,000 in individual donations-better than most days in recent weeks. That fundraising contributed to more than $76 million in total contributions last month, according to his campaign and new data.


Prosecuting Netanyahu Has Risks for International Criminal Court

WASHINGTON-For more than 25 years, the U.S. relationship with the International Criminal Court has veered between idealistic support to outright hostility, with an arm's length distance being the norm.

Now, with ICC prosecutor Karim Khan announcing he will seek charges against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the Gaza war a year after obtaining an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine allegations, the ICC has asserted the independence its framers imagined-at the likely cost of practical support and diplomatic legitimacy that only superpower backing can bring.


Write to ina.kreutz@wsj.com

TODAY IN CANADA

Earnings:

Nothing scheduled

Economic Indicators (ET):

0830 Apr CPI

Stocks to Watch:

Anaergia Announces Extended Delay in the Filing of Its Audited Fincl Statements; Expects It Will Be in a Position to File the Required Documents in First Half of June


Expected Major Events for Tuesday

07:00/GER: Apr PPI

09:00/ITA: Mar Balance of Payments

10:00/UK: May CBI Industrial Trends Survey

12:30/CAN: Apr CPI

12:55/US: 05/18 Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index

20:30/US: API Weekly Statistical Bulletin

23:50/JPN: Apr Provisional Trade Statistics for the Month

23:50/JPN: Mar Orders Received for Machinery

All times in GMT. Powered by Kantar Media and Dow Jones.


Expected Earnings for Tuesday

9 Meters Biopharma Inc (NMTRQ) is expected to report for 1Q.

AYRO Inc (AYRO) is expected to report for 1Q.

Almaden Minerals Ltd (AAU,AMM.T) is expected to report for 1Q.

Aris Mining Corp (ARIS.T) is expected to report for 1Q.

AutoZone Inc (AZO) is expected to report $35.91 for 3Q.

BowFlex Inc (BFXXQ) is expected to report $-0.06 for 4Q.

California First Leasing Corp (CFNB) is expected to report for 3Q.

Citi Trends Inc (CTRN) is expected to report $-0.45 for 1Q.

Contineum Therapeutics Inc (CTNM) is expected to report for 1Q.

DSS Inc (DSS) is expected to report for 1Q.

Dundee Corp (DC.A.T,DDEJF) is expected to report for 1Q.

Eagle Materials Inc (EXP) is expected to report $2.64 for 4Q.

Educational Development Corp (EDUC) is expected to report for 4Q.

Elicio Therapeutics Inc (ELTX) is expected to report for 1Q.

Equus Total Return Inc (EQS) is expected to report for 1Q.

Exscientia PLC - ADR (EXAI) is expected to report for 1Q.

Fresh Tracks Therapeutics Inc (FRTX) is expected to report $-0.19 for 1Q.

Invitae Corp (NVTA) is expected to report $-0.45 for 1Q.

KALA BIO Inc (KALA) is expected to report $-2.89 for 1Q.

LGL Group (LGL) is expected to report for 1Q.

Lowe's Cos (LOW) is expected to report $2.97 for 1Q.

Macy's Inc (M) is expected to report $0.18 for 1Q.

Microbot Medical Inc (MBOT) is expected to report for 1Q.

Modine Manufacturing Co (MOD) is expected to report $0.72 for 4Q.

NexImmune Inc (NEXI) is expected to report for 1Q.

Orgenesis Inc (ORGS) is expected to report for 1Q.

Pressure BioSciences Inc (PBIO) is expected to report for 4Q.

SWK Holdings Corp (SWKH) is expected to report $0.00 for 1Q.

Sonim Technologies Inc (SONM) is expected to report $-0.03 for 1Q.

Sonnet BioTherapeutics Holdings Inc (SONN) is expected to report for 2Q.

SunLink Health Systems Inc (SSY) is expected to report for 3Q.

(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires

05-21-24 0620ET