Fed chairman comments send stock futures higher to start the week
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U.S. equity futures are starting the week off higher after comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
The major futures indexes are indicating an increase of 1.6 percent, or 370 Dow points as of 6:45 a.m. ET.
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Fed Chairman Powell talked about the outlook for the U.S. economy's recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, saying a lot may hinge on the completion of a successful vaccine.
FED'S POWELL WARNS CORONAVIRUS RECOVERY COULD STRETCH THROUGH END OF 2021
"This economy will recover...We'll get through this. It may take a while. It may take a period of time. It could stretch through the end of next year," Powell said during a rare televised interview that aired on "60 Minutes" Sunday night. "We really don't know. We hope that it will be shorter than that, but no one really knows."
Although the economy may begin to recover in the second half of 2020 so long as there is not a second wave of the novel coronavirus, Powell said it may not return to pre-crisis levels until a vaccine is delivered as certain sectors like sporting events and theaters struggle to adapt to strict social distancing guidelines.
U.S. crude is trading higher by 8.2 percent, or $2.41 to $31.84. Brent crude, the international benchmark is gaining 5.9 percent, or $1.91 to $34.41.
Asian markets traded higher on Monday. Japan's Nikkei was up 0.5 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.6 percent and China's Shanghai Composite gained 0.2 percent.
In Europe, London's FTSE jumped 2.1 percent, Germany's DAX added 2.6 percent and France's CAC gained 2.1 percent.
U.S. stocks edged higher Friday, but notched weekly declines after a wide range of data revealed the sharp contraction in economic activity across the nation.
Trade tensions between the U.S. and China heated up, igniting concerns about relations between the countries. The major indexes ended higher on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3 percent, the S&P 500 rose 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.8 percent.
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For the week, the Dow and S&P 500 fell 2.7 percent and 2.3 percent. The Nasdaq lost 1.2 percent.
FOX Business' Megan Henney contributed to this article.
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