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(Reuters) – U.S. stock index futures rose on Friday as Pfizer said it could apply for emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate as early as November, shaking off worries over a stand-off in Washington on more fiscal aid.
The drugmaker’s shares (N:PFE) firmed 1% in premarket trading after it said it would file for U.S. emergency approval of its COVID-19 vaccine candidate being developed along with Germany’s BioNTech SE (F:22UAy) as soon as a safety milestone is achieved in the third week of November.
BioNTech’s U.S.-listed shares (O:BNTX) jumped 2.4%.
Trading on Wall Street this week has been dictated by news about more federal aid to help businesses and households reeling from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the S&P 500 on track for its smallest weekly gains in three.
Talks between Democrats and Republicans seemed unlikely to yield a deal before the Nov. 3 election at a time when data has underscored a struggling labor market and a stalling economic recovery.
President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden will return to the campaign trail with visits to three battleground states, a day after the two contenders clashed from afar during dueling televised town halls.
Meanwhile, after a mixed start to the third-quarter earnings season from the big Wall Street lenders, investors will look next week to results from Netflix Inc (O:NFLX), one of the technology mega-caps that have benefited from stay-at-home demand during the pandemic.
Analysts’ expectations for S&P 500 companies’ earnings have improved to an 18.8% fall from a 25% tumble forecast three months earlier.
Schlumberger (N:SLB) dipped 0.4% ahead of its results scheduled before the opening bell.
At 6:35 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis <1YMcv1> were up 55 points, or 0.19%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 6.5 points, or 0.19%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 34.25 points, or 0.29%.
Gilead Sciences Inc (O:GILD) slipped 1.3% as a World Health Organization study concluded its COVID-19 drug remdesivir does not help patients who have been admitted to hospital. Gilead has questioned the findings of the study.
Boeing Co (N:BA) rose 3.3% as a report said Europe’s aviation regulator had declared the U.S. planemaker’s 737 MAX safe to fly again.
