Stock Market Futures Drop Following Positive Economic Rebound Signs

U.S stock futures are trading down yet again today. This could come as a surprise to some seeing as investors received a flurry of positive signs regarding the economy. For the most part, this is apparent from the latest quarterly GDP estimates and weekly jobless claims figures. To begin with, the U.S. economy reportedly grew by a 6.9% annualized pace. This would be well above consensus estimates of 5.5%. Following that, initial jobless claims for the previous week were 260,000, slightly better than the 265,000 expected.

Weighing in on the current situation in the stock market is Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) Managing Director Kathy Entwistle. She argues that “Everything the Fed is doing at this point we think has just been priced in over the last few weeks. And that’s where a lot of the slide in the market has come from.” Entwistle continues, “We’re looking at companies and their earnings … to determine whether or not we’re going to have a little bit more of a pullback in the market or not.”

As such, investors will likely continue digesting and reacting to the wave of massive firms posting earnings now. As of 7:31 a.m. ET, the Dow, S&P 500, & Nasdaq futures are declining by 0.90%, 0.77%, 0.42%, respectively.

AMD Receives Regulatory Nod From China On $35 Billion Xilinx Deal

On the acquisitions front, chipmaker AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) received some positive news yesterday. According to the company, China’s market regulator is now providing conditional approval for its acquisition of Xilinx (NASDAQ: XLNX). In doing so, it would bring the $35 billion deal between semiconductor giants one step closer to the finish line. Subsequently, U.S. regulatory approval would be the final hurdle for the deal to overcome. Regarding the current approval, China’s State Administration for Market Regulation conditions are as follows.

In essence, the duo can not force tie-in sales of products or discriminate against customers buying particular sets of products among them. On top of that, the regulator also adds that the new entity must uphold “the flexibility and programmability of Xilinx FPGAs” and “that their development methods are compatible with ARM-based processors.” In the larger scheme of things, this could put AMD at an advantage against its industry peers. This is apparent with rivals such as Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) and Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) scrapping major acquisition plans. Moreover, some would argue that with semiconductor firms ramping up operations amidst shortages, this is a timely win for AMD. If anything, most would be eager to see how the current news will impact AMD stock now.

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Apple Posts Record Quarterly Revenue As Supply Chain Pressures Ease

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is once again in the limelight thanks to its latest quarterly earnings report. In it, the consumer tech goliath posted stellar figures. Namely, it reported a record quarterly revenue of $123.9 billion, marking a solid 11% year-over-year increase. For comparison, this is versus estimates of $118.66 billion. Furthermore, Apple raked in an earnings per share of $2.10, topping forecasts of $1.89. This translates to a 25% year-over-year bump. If all that wasn’t enough, the company also beat estimates for iPhone revenue by over $3 billion, totaling $71.63 billion for the quarter. Overall, Apple is coming out the gate strong from its latest holiday season. This is apparent as demand for its portfolio of consumer electronics persists with most segments reporting year-over-year increases.