10 things you need to know before the opening bell
The White House is reportedly taking another stab Trumpcare. The Trump administration is trying to make progress in its attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare before Trump's 100th day in office, which happens next week, CNN reports.
China is reportedly relaxing measures that restrict money from leaving the country. The People's Bank of China is reportedly relaxing measures that restrict capital outflows as a pullback in the US dollar has lessened pressure on its currency, the yuan, Reuters says, citing unnamed sources.
UK Parliament backs an early election. Members of Parliament voted 522 to 13 to back prime minister Theresa May's call for a general election. The British pound is stronger by 0.4% at 1.2822 against the dollar.
Oil is rebounding. West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 4% on Wednesday as oil inventories fell less than expected and gasoline supplies jumped for the first time in several months. On Thursday, WTI trades up 0.7% at $50.80 a barrel.
Short bets against Wingstop are piling up. Short interest in the stock is at its highest level since the wing chain went public back in June 2015, data from financial analytics firm S3 Partners shows.
Qualcomm beats. The chipmaker earned an adjusted $1.34 per share, well ahead of the $1.19 that analysts were anticipating, helping to ease concerns over its patent-licensing business.
American Express beats as card member spending jumps. The company earned $1.34 per share on revenue of $7.89 billion as card member spending grew 8% on a currency adjusted basis.
Stock markets around the world are higher. Hong Kong's Hang Seng (+1%) led in Asia and France's CAC (+0.9%) sees solid gains in Europe. The S&P 500 is set to open up 0.2% near 2,344.
Earnings reporting picks up. Blackstone, DR Horton, and Verizon will report ahead of the opening bell while Visa is set to release its quarterly results after markets close.
US economic data flows. Initial jobless claims and the Philly Fed will both be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is up 1 basis point at 2.23%.