U.S. stock futures rallied, with the contract on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rising by its daily limit, after European policy makers unveiled a $1 trillion loan package to contain a sovereign-debt crisis.
Citigroup Inc. and Bank of America Corp. jumped more than 5% in early New York trading. Morgan Stanley climbed 4.6%. Schlumberger Ltd. and Chevron Corp. followed oil prices higher, while Alcoa Inc., the largest U.S. aluminum producer, rallied with metal prices.
June contracts on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index increased 4.4% to 1,155.2 at 8:52 a.m. in New York after earlier reaching 1,162. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 377 points, or 3.7%, to 10,712 and Nasdaq-100 futures surged 4.2% to 1,925.50. U.S. stocks fell the most in 14 months last week, erasing their 2010 advance, as concern about Greece's finances and a breakdown in U.S. market systems spurred the most volatile trading in a quarter century.
“I was rubbing my eyes and trying to make sure I was looking at the right numbers,” said James Dunigan, chief investment officer at PNC Wealth Management in Philadelphia, which oversees $104 billion. “The European bailout is a good place to start. The ECB didn't have much choice and is doing the right thing. The selloff from last week is overdone.”
S&P 500 futures earlier rallied as much as 55 points, the overnight limit set by the CME Group Inc., the world's largest futures and options exchange. At the beginning of each quarter, the CME sets new maximum amounts by which stock-index futures are allowed to rise or fall. Dow futures jumped as much as 421 points, less than their second-quarter limit of 550 points.
