Today: 7 February 2026
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Shan Ahmed Khan

As a journalist focused on finance and the stock market, he delivers fast, reliable, and easy-to-understand coverage of market news.

Crude oil rebounds, but Exxon stock and USO ETF slip in premarket as Venezuela headlines bite

Crude oil rebounds, but Exxon stock and USO ETF slip in premarket as Venezuela headlines bite

NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2026, 07:06 (EST) — Premarket U.S. oil-linked exchange-traded fund United States Oil Fund (USO) fell about 1% in premarket trade on Thursday, while Exxon Mobil was down about 2% and Chevron eased less than 1%. The early drift matters because crude is trying to steady after a rough two-session slide, and oil equities are heading into earnings season with little cushion if prices wobble again. Washington’s moves around Venezuela and Russia sanctions are landing on top of basic supply-and-demand signals from U.S. inventories. Brent and U.S. crude benchmarks were higher in Europe. Brent was up 59
8 January 2026
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US economic calendar today: What to watch as U.S. stock futures slip before Friday’s jobs report

US economic calendar today: What to watch as U.S. stock futures slip before Friday’s jobs report

NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2026, 07:05 EST — Premarket U.S. stock index futures edged down on Thursday, with traders keeping positions tight ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report, while defense names rose on talk of a bigger Pentagon budget. At 5:08 a.m. ET, Dow futures were down 146 points, or 0.30%, S&P 500 futures slipped 0.22% and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 0.31% — futures are contracts that track where indexes may open. Lockheed Martin climbed 7.2%, Northrop Grumman added 7.5% and RTX rose 4.9% after Trump said the 2027 U.S. military budget should be $1.5 trillion, versus the $901 billion
8 January 2026
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Heating oil ETF UHN slips after surprise distillate build — what markets watch next

Heating oil ETF UHN slips after surprise distillate build — what markets watch next

New York, Jan 8, 2026, 07:17 EST — Premarket U.S.-listed heating oil fund UHN slid on Wednesday, tracking a softer tone in distillates after fresh U.S. inventory data. The United States Diesel-Heating Oil Fund last traded at $20.60, down 2.18%, after opening at $21.18 and hitting a low of $20.46. m.dividendchannel.com The move matters now because distillate fuel — the barrel that includes diesel and heating oil — is the winter workhorse, and stocks jumped just as traders look for cold-weather drawdowns. U.S. distillate inventories rose by 5.6 million barrels to 129.3 million barrels in the latest week, the Energy
8 January 2026
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Mortgage rates today hold near 6.2% as D.R. Horton stock slides before jobs report

Mortgage rates today hold near 6.2% as D.R. Horton stock slides before jobs report

NEW YORK, January 8, 2026, 07:03 EST — Premarket U.S. mortgage rates today were little changed near 6.2%, while homebuilder shares slipped in premarket trade, with D.R. Horton down about 3.6%. Optimal Blue data put the average 30-year fixed conforming rate at 6.163% for loans locked as of Jan. 6, up roughly 1 basis point (0.01 percentage point) from the prior day. Fortune That matters because the housing market is still rate-led: small moves feed straight into monthly payments and demand, especially for first-time buyers. Traders are also bracing for Friday’s U.S. employment report, which can swing Treasury yields and,
8 January 2026
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Natural gas price today: UNG ETF holds Wednesday’s jump as traders brace for the EIA storage report

Natural gas price today: UNG ETF holds Wednesday’s jump as traders brace for the EIA storage report

NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2026, 06:56 EST — Premarket The United States Natural Gas Fund was flat at $11.78 in premarket trade, after jumping 4.4% on Wednesday. The ETF fell 3.0% on Tuesday as the gas market swung back and forth early in the new year. StockAnalysis Benchmark Henry Hub natural gas was at $3.57 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), up 1.4% early Thursday, after trading between $3.55 and $3.63. The move comes with traders focused on fresh storage data rather than the last round of weather models. markets.businessinsider.com UNG is built to mirror the day-to-day percentage moves in
8 January 2026
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UK stock market today: FTSE 100 slips on Shell warning as defence stocks jump

UK stock market today: FTSE 100 slips on Shell warning as defence stocks jump

London, January 8, 2026, 11:24 GMT — Regular session UK shares eased on Thursday after Shell slid on a downbeat trading update, even as defence names ran higher on fresh bets on military spending. The FTSE 100, London’s blue-chip index, was down 0.3% by 10:40 GMT and the mid-cap FTSE 250 fell 0.4%. Reuters It matters because the market’s first full week of the year is already splitting into clear winners and losers — energy and UK retail on one side, defence on the other — and investors are using every trading statement as a stress test for margins and
8 January 2026
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Bitcoin price slips below $91,000 as ETF outflows grow ahead of U.S. jobs report

Bitcoin price slips below $91,000 as ETF outflows grow ahead of U.S. jobs report

New York, Jan 8, 2026, 06:23 EST — Premarket Bitcoin fell below $91,000 on Thursday as investors stepped back from riskier bets after a brisk start to the year. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency was down 2.4% at $90,589 by 6:23 a.m. EST, while ether slid about 4% and XRP dropped more than 6%, Coinbase data showed. Coinbase The pullback lands as traders brace for Friday’s U.S. payrolls report, a release that can swing expectations for where interest rates settle next. U.S. stock index futures also edged lower in premarket trade, underlining a cautious tone across markets. Reuters Flows were also
8 January 2026
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Nvidia’s China upfront-payment demand puts AI stocks in focus ahead of U.S. payrolls

Nvidia’s China upfront-payment demand puts AI stocks in focus ahead of U.S. payrolls

New York, January 8, 2026, 06:41 (EST) — Premarket Nvidia shares rose about 1% to $189.11 in premarket trade on Thursday after sources said the chipmaker is demanding full upfront payment from Chinese buyers of its H200 artificial-intelligence chips. The terms leave customers no option to cancel or ask for refunds once an order is placed, the people said. Reuters The tighter stance matters because China demand is a swing factor for AI stocks that have powered the rally, and policy risk is now showing up in contracts, not just headlines. Beijing has asked some Chinese tech firms to halt
8 January 2026
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XRP price slides 7% toward $2 as ETF outflows hit and jobs data looms

XRP price slides 7% toward $2 as ETF outflows hit and jobs data looms

New York, January 8, 2026, 06:26 ET — Premarket XRP fell about 7% to around $2.09 on Thursday, pulling back after a sharp early-year run for the Ripple-linked token. Bitcoin was down about 2.2% at $90,059 and ether slipped about 3.2% to $3,119. CoinMarketCap The slide came as U.S. spot XRP exchange-traded funds (ETFs) logged their first net outflow day since launch, with about $40.8 million leaving on Wednesday, Cointelegraph reported, citing SoSoValue data. A spot ETF holds the underlying asset, rather than tracking it through futures contracts. TradingView That matters now because ETF flow has been the market’s cleanest
8 January 2026
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Silver price stock SLV drops in premarket as spot silver slides ahead of U.S. jobs data

Silver price stock SLV drops in premarket as spot silver slides ahead of U.S. jobs data

New York, January 8, 2026, 06:17 EST — Premarket Shares of iShares Silver Trust (SLV), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that holds physical silver and trades like a stock, fell 2.9% to $68.90 in premarket trade. The fund closed down 3.7% at $70.96 on Wednesday and was testing a break below the prior session’s $69.22 low, with the $73.84 52-week high back in view as a near-term ceiling. Investing.com The timing is awkward for silver bulls. The market is heading into a U.S. jobs report that can shift interest-rate bets in a hurry, and silver tends to react hard when the
8 January 2026
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Oil prices rise on U.S. stock draw and Venezuela headlines; Exxon stock steadies after earnings-hit warning

Oil prices rise on U.S. stock draw and Venezuela headlines; Exxon stock steadies after earnings-hit warning

NEW YORK, Jan 8, 2026, 06:20 EST — Premarket Exxon Mobil shares were up about 0.1% in premarket trade at $118.61 on Thursday, after ending the prior session down 2.1%. In a regulatory filing, Exxon said lower crude prices could trim fourth-quarter upstream — its oil and gas production business — earnings by $800 million to $1.2 billion. The filing also showed stronger refining margins, a gauge of profit from turning crude into fuel, could add $300 million to $700 million, with results due on Jan. 30. MarketWatch+1 That tug-of-war is shaping early positioning into the energy earnings run, with
8 January 2026
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Gold price slips ahead of U.S. jobs data as Newmont stock and GLD track bullion

Gold price slips ahead of U.S. jobs data as Newmont stock and GLD track bullion

New York, Jan 8, 2026, 06:12 EST — Premarket Spot gold fell 0.6% to $4,427.48 an ounce on Thursday, weighed down by a firmer dollar and positioning ahead of the Bloomberg Commodity Index’s annual rebalancing, a reshuffle that can force big funds to trade futures. “Over the next five days, COMEX futures could see selling in the region of $6 to $7 billion in each metal,” Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank, said. Reuters The timing matters because gold is coming off a year that reset price levels and expectations, leaving less room for surprises. Morgan Stanley
8 January 2026
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Stock Market Today

Vodafone shares steady up after Q3 wobble — Germany, buyback and next results now set the tone

Vodafone shares steady up after Q3 wobble — Germany, buyback and next results now set the tone

7 February 2026
Vodafone shares rose 1.47% to 110.60p Friday, recovering part of Thursday’s 4.68% drop after a Q3 update. Group revenue climbed 6.5% to €10.5 billion, but Germany’s 0.7% service revenue growth missed some forecasts. Vodafone launched a new €500 million buyback tranche, bringing total buybacks since May to €3.5 billion. Investors remain focused on Germany’s pace and cash flow execution.
NatWest Group stock: buyback filing and Rightmove mortgage deal set up a busy week

NatWest Group stock: buyback filing and Rightmove mortgage deal set up a busy week

7 February 2026
NatWest shares closed up 1.45% at 659.4 pence Friday, buoyed by a buyback of 797,428 shares and a new digital mortgage deal with Rightmove. The Bank of England held rates at 3.75% but signaled possible cuts, with markets pricing in two reductions for 2026. NatWest plans to expand its Accelerator community to 50,000 members by 2026. Annual results are due Feb. 13.
Unilever share price holds at 5,250p as results week looms — what investors watch next

Unilever share price holds at 5,250p as results week looms — what investors watch next

7 February 2026
Unilever shares closed flat at 5,250p in London Friday, underperforming the FTSE 100’s 0.6% gain. The company issued 4.2 million new shares for employee plans, bringing total shares to over 2.18 billion. Investors await Q4 and full-year results on Feb. 12, with analyst consensus pointing to 3.9% Q4 sales growth. Unilever’s U.S. ADR rose 0.8% to $72.12.
BP share price near 52-week high ahead of Feb 10 earnings as buyback runs on

BP share price near 52-week high ahead of Feb 10 earnings as buyback runs on

7 February 2026
BP shares closed up 1.9% at 478 pence Friday, just below a 52-week high, as the company continued buybacks ahead of next week’s results. BP repurchased 2.789 million shares on February 6. Oil prices firmed on geopolitical risk, with Brent at $68.05 a barrel, but sector outlook remains uncertain. Investors await BP’s earnings and dividend decision due Tuesday.
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