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Top 5 Things to Know in the Market on Friday

Investing.com

Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know in financial markets on Friday, April 26:

1. GDP growth forecast to hit 2-year low

The preliminary release of first-quarter gross domestic product at 8:30 AM ET (12:30 GMT) is expected to show that U.S. economic growth was 2.0%, its slowest pace since the first quarter of 2017.

Although GDP is often viewed as a lagging indicator, with most of the ingredients released ahead of the headline number, high levels of uncertainty may increase the likelihood of market volatility.

“We observe the largest dispersion among consensus forecasts since the global financial crisis,” John Velis, FX and macro strategist at BNY Mellon, said in a note. He highlighted the range of estimates in a Bloomberg consensus were as high as 2.9% and as low as 1.0%.

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“When the verdict on U.S. growth in the first quarter is finally revealed, someone somewhere will be surprised, and risk assets could react accordingly,” Velis concluded.

2. Intel plunges 8% on weak guidance

Shares in Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) plunged 8% in premarket trade Friday after the chipmaker reported weak guidance.

The Dow component said it expects to earn 89 cents a share on revenue of $15.6 billion in the second quarter. The projection compares with an estimate of $1.02 from S&P Capital IQ and a revenue estimate of $16.88 billion.

The gloomy outlook sent waves of bearish sentiment through the semiconductor sector. Rival chipmakers Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) and Micron (NASDAQ:MU) were also under pressure in extended hours trading.

3. Blue-chip oil stocks step up to plate amid earnings reports

With Intel set to lead declines on the Dow Jones, oil blue-chip stocks ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) will step up to the plate as they release earnings ahead of Friday’s open.

First-quarter results will be under the microscope in an environment of sharply higher oil prices.

In other earnings to be priced in on Friday, shares in Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) - currently the world’s third most valuable company behind Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) - registered gains of around 1% in premarket. The online retailer reported better-than-expected first quarter results, but also delivered a cautious guidance.

Mattel (NASDAQ:MAT), Ford (NYSE:F) and Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) - who all reported after the prior session’s close - saw gains in premarket trade, while American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL), Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM), Goodyear Tire & Rubber (NASDAQ:GT) and Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY) were among companies slated to release quarterly numbers ahead of Friday’s open.

Read more: GE Q1 Earnings Likely To Show Its Turnaround Hasn’t Taken Hold Yet - Haris Anwar

4. Intel pressures Dow futures, Nasdaq futures hold onto gains

U.S. futures pointed to a mixed open ahead of further earnings reports and GDP data.

Similar to Thursday’s session that saw industrial giant 3M (NYSE:MMM) drive the Dow lower, Intel’s weak forecast was driving declines in the blue-chip index.

At 5:25 AM ET (9:25 GMT), the blue-chip Dow futures fell 50 points, or 0.2%, S&P 500 futures declined 5 points, or 0.2%, while the Nasdaq 100 futures inched up just 2 points, virtually unchanged.

Aside from first-quarter results and economic growth, markets could react to any details coming from the meeting of U.S. President Donald Trump and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The two leaders will meet in Washington as the two countries attempt to work out a trade deal that will give American farmers more access to the Japanese market while allowing Tokyo to avoid tariffs on cars exported to the U.S.

5. Uber expected to unveil terms of $90 billion IPO

Uber Technologies (NYSE:UBER) will announce the terms of its initial public offering on Friday in an operation that will reportedly value the company at between $80 and $90 billion.

Sources said that the IPO price range will be between $44 and $50 per share.

If confirmed, Uber’s IPO would be the largest since China’s Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) went public in 2014.

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