5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens

U.S. stock futures are gaining and oil prices falling as investors turn their sights to the earnings season and increasingly bet that Iran’s attack on Israel won’t escalate into a broader conflict; Samsung Electronics overtook Apple (AAPL) as the world’s top smartphone provider in the first quarter; the Commerce Department has awarded up to $6.4 billion to Samsung to expand its U.S. chip facilities; shares of Salesforce (CRM) are slipping in premarket trading on a report it is in talks to buy Informatica (INFA); and Goldman Sachs (GS) shares are rising after it posted better-than-expected first-quarter earnings. Here’s what investors need to know today.

1. Stocks Rise, Oil Falls as Investors Bet That Middle East Tensions Can Be Contained 

U.S. stock futures are gaining and oil prices falling as investors increasingly bet that Iran’s attack on Israel won’t escalate and the conflict in the Middle East could be contained. Brent crude futures had climbed to a 6-month high above $92 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate broke out above $87 a barrel on Friday, but on Monday morning, Brent was trading at $89.87 a barrel and WTI at $85.04 a barrel. Safe-haven asset gold continued to climb, however.

2. Apple Overtaken by Samsung as No. 1 Smartphone Provider

Samsung Electronics has overtaken Apple (AAPL) as the world’s top smartphone provider in the first quarter, according to data from research firm International Data Corporation, as Chinese rivals grabbed market share from the iPhone maker. Global shipments of Apple smartphones fell 9.6% on year to 50.1 million units in the first three months of the year, while Samsung’s fell 0.7% to 60.1 million units, IDC said. Apple’s market share globally fell to 17.3% from 20.7% a year ago, while Samsung’s fell to 20.8% from 22.5% as China’s Xiaomi became the third-largest smartphone provider in the quarter. Transsion and Oppo, both Chinese makers of cheap smartphones, were in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Still, the broader smartphone industry is seeing a revival, with global smartphone shipments rising 7.8% year-over-year during the quarter. Apple shares are about 1% lower in premarket trading.

3. US Awards South Korea’s Samsung Up to $6.4B to Build Chip-Making Facilities in Texas 

South Korean tech giant Samsung (005930.KS) is reportedly getting up to $6.4 billion to increase chip production in Texas, the latest beneficiary of the Biden administration’s efforts to expand the domestic semiconductor industry. The White House said in a statement that the award will “cement central Texas’s role as a state-of-the-art semiconductor ecosystem, creating at least 21,500 jobs and leveraging up to $40 million in CHIPS funding to train and develop the local workforce.” Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSM) was awarded up to $6.6 billion in direct federal funding for its Arizona chip facilities last week and other recipients include Intel (INTC) and GlobalFoundries (GFS). The funds come from the CHIPS and Science Act, a 2022 piece of legislation that earmarked over $50 billion for investment in semiconductor research and manufacturing facilities to be built in the U.S. after the industry mostly has moved overseas in recent years.

4. Salesforce Dips on Report It May Acquire Informatica 

Shares of Salesforce (CRM) are 2.5% lower in premarket trading following a report from The Wall Street Journal  that the customer relationship management software maker is in advanced discussions to acquire Informatica (INFA) in what could be its largest deal since it bought  workplace collaboration app Slack Technologies for $28 billion during the pandemic work-from-home boom in 2021. One potential roadblock to a transaction getting finalized surrounds the price being discussed, which is below Informatica’s Friday closing price of $38.48, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal, which first reported the story Friday evening. Shares of Informatica, a data-management software provider that recently launched a generative artificial intelligence (AI) tool, are down 1.8% premarket but are up more than 40% this year.

5. Goldman Sachs Shares Surge on Better-Than-Expected Q1 Results

Shares in Goldman Sachs (GS) are surging 3% premarket after the Wall Street powerhouse posted buoyant first-quarter earnings in a bank earnings season that so far has shown investment banking deals and asset management gaining on the back of rising markets. Goldman posted net revenues of $14.21 billion, up 16% from $12.22 billion the same quarter last year, and earnings per share (EPS) of $11.58, up 32% from $8.79 in Q1 2023. It beat both the top- and bottom-line expectations, as Goldman Chief Executive Officer (CEO) David Solomon has pulled back from a push into retail banking to refocus on its traditional investment banking and trading operations. 

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