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Futures Up Big on MLK Holiday

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Monday, January 15, 2018

Today marks the national domestic holiday for Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. On what would have been his 89th birthday, Dr. King is remembered for helping bring Civil Rights to people of color in the U.S. This April will mark the 50th anniversary of his assassination.

King is also known for his highly inspirational speeches, and quotes such as, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Words to live by, whether as a Civil Rights trailblazer, a soldier, a teacher or an experienced stock market investor.

When markets open again tomorrow morning, we look forward to plenty of new Q4 earnings reports, largely from more of the big banks, continuing what began on Friday: Citigroup (C - Free Report) , Bank of America (BAC - Free Report) and Goldman Sachs (GS - Free Report) , among others. Other industries will also be represented, such as healthcare — UnitedHealth Group (UNH - Free Report) — and transportation — CSX Corp. (CSX - Free Report) .

As we saw Friday with Q4 reports from JPMorgan (JPM - Free Report) and Wells Fargo (WFC - Free Report) , we expect one-time charges and gains due to the recently passed tax cut laws. This is anticipated to be especially true at Citi, where analysts expect a $20 billion one-time charge at the bank major.

For more on what to expect from the big banks and other companies reporting quarterly earnings this week and beyond, check out Zacks Director of Research Sheraz Mian’s latest Earnings Preview: JPMorgan’s Positive Kick-Off to Bank Earnings

Following Friday’s close at fresh record highs, holiday futures trading shows even stronger markets ahead: the Dow is up triple digits currently, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 are marginally in the green. Should this trajectory continue into tomorrow morning, look for the Dow to be within striking distance of 26,000. This is an extraordinary rise in value; at this point a year ago, market participants were hoping to see the index crack the 20K level.

Mark Vickery
Senior Editor

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