Wall Street hits fresh new highs ahead of next earnings season

4.10pm: US stocks hit new highs at the close The S&P 500 and Nasdaq each set all-time intraday highs, closing at 4,385 points and 14,733 points respectively. The Dow erased earlier losses to gain about 0.3%, or more than 100 points, finishing at 34,996 points.  12.10pm: US indices higher at lunch US benchmarks were higher at lunch but trading got off to a slow start in the new week. Investors appear to be content to await the testimony from Fed chairman Jerome Powell on Wednesday as well as a slew of US economic reports as the unofficial start of earnings season begins. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added around 86 points at 34.956, while the S&P 500 gained around ten at 4,379. The  tech-laden Nasdaq added around nine points at 14,711, having hit an intraday record high earlier in the day, of 14,761. On Friday all tree benchmarks finished at all-time highs. "A slow start to the week has seen European and US markets enjoy marginal gains in a bid to follow Friday’s impressive surge for stocks," said Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at IG, a global leader in online trading. In London earlier, FTSE 100 closed around three points higher at 7,125. 10.05am: Proactive North America headlines: EVmo Inc (OTCMKTS:YAYO) closes $15M debt financing to drive fleet and market expansion Altamira Gold Corp (CVE:ALTA) (OTCPINK:EQTRF) eyes drill start at Mutum target in Brazil this month as it hails IP survey results Global Energy Metals Corporation (CVE:GEMC) (OTCMKTS:GBLEF) (FRA:5GE1) joins European Raw Materials Alliance to help develop sustainable supply chains on the continent Victory Square Technologies Inc (CSE:VST) (OTCMKTS:VSQTF) (FRA:6F6) subsidiary becomes first coast to coast SunPower dealer in Canada KWESST Micro Systems Inc (CVE:KWE) (OTCQB:KWEMF) announces commercialization road map for its non-lethal Low Energy Cartridge product line Recruiter.com Group Inc (NASDAQ:RCRT) acquires Uncubed's Technology Solutions business BetterLife Pharma Inc (CSE:BETR) (OTCQB:BETRF) (FRA:NPAU) says it expects to start human trials on non-hallucinogenic LSD compound TD-0148A in 2022 Benchmark Metals Inc (CVE:BNCH) (OTCQX:BNCHF) plans for 37,000m of classification drilling to grow AGB, Dukes Ridge and Cliff Creek deposits at Lawyers The Parent Company (NEO: GRAM.U) (OTCQX:GRAMF) expands product line with value vape offerings Loncor Gold Inc (TSE:LN) (OTCQX:LONCF) (FRA:LO51) says latest holes drilled at Adumbi deposit intersect significant widths and grades Lucky Minerals Inc (CVE:LKY) (OTCMKTS:LKMNF) (FRA:LKY) receives sample assay results from Wayka epithermal gold discovery on its Fortuna property in Ecuador Numinus Wellness Inc (CVE:NUMI) (OTCMKTS:LKYSF) (FRA:LR23) gets Health Canada approval for study on MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD GlobeX Data Ltd (OTCQB:SWISF) (CSE:SWIS) (FRA:GDT) sponsoring 74 YouTube episodes of The Epoch Times under US mass marketing strategy for its Sekur platform Q BioMed Inc (OTCQB:QBIO) inks license deal with Clionix for sales of Strontium89 in Europe and the Middle East PlantX Life Inc (CSE:VEGA) (FRA:WNT1) (OTCQB: PLTXF) adds vegan wines to its online grocery selection Snowline Gold Corp (CSE:SGD) (OTCPINK:SNWGF) names Matthew Roma its new CFO as Natasha Tsai steps down Lingo Media Corporation (CVE:LM) (OTCMKTS:LMDCF) (FRA:LIMA) says subsidiary will partner with admissions platform to help students pursue their dreams Spotlite360 Technologies Inc (CSE:LITE) (FRA:87A) announces blockchain and IoT solution for healthcare industry supply chains Tetra Bio-Pharma puts QIXLEEF study on the fast track with introduction of three more oral pain relief treatments for comparison CytoDyn Inc (OTCQB:CYDY) advances to Phase 2 trial with leronlimab for mTNBC metastatic breast cancer treatment Marrone Bio Innovations Inc (NASDAQ:MBII) (FRA:0MB) and partner Rizobacter expand strategic alliance to supply Rizonema seed treatment in Brazil Versus Systems Inc (NASDAQ:VS) (FRA:BMVB) to drive fan engagement for Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo in Salt Lake City Fabled Silver Gold Corp (CVE:FCO) (OTCQB:FBSGF) (FRA:7NQ) welcomes latest drill assays from Mexico project, which highlight new high grade gold system with silver credits ImagineAR Inc (CSE:IP) (OTCQB:IPNFF) (FRA:GMS1) says client Clube Atlético Mineiro successfully launched interactive “Galo Augmented Reality” experience for fans Jack Nathan Health Medical Corp (CVE:JNH) (OTCQB:JNHMF) announces new coronavirus testing program with Walmart Mexico Tinka Resources Limited (CVE:TK) (BVL:TK ) (OTCQB:TKRFF ) (FRA:TLD)  triples property at Ayawilca with acquisition of Silvia copper project in Peru Zinc8 Energy Solutions  Inc (CVE:ZAIR) (OTCPINK:MGXRF) (FRA:0E9) says new award further affirms its unique energy storage technology 9.37am Mixed start for Wall Street The main indices on Wall Street  got off to a mixed start on Monday, with the Nasdaq proving to be the positive outlier at the opening bell. In the first minutes of trading, the tech-heavy index was up 0.34% at 14,751, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.32% to 34,756 and the S&P 500 fell 0.09% to 4,365. Meanwhile, despite expectations of a surge following its successful test flight over the weekend, shares in space tourism firm Virgin Galactic slumped 6.2% to US$46.13 in early deals, potentially due to profit-taking as optimism over the launch previously drove the stock higher. 7:45am: Wall Street set to open mixed Concerns about the Delta variant of COVID-19 are making global markets uneasy, and that includes the US, where stocks are set to give back some of Friday’s gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is expected to open 153 points lower at 34,717 and the S&P 500 is tipped to shed 12 points at 4,358. The tech-laced Nasdaq 100 is seen defying the trend, however, with a 24 point advance to 14,850. “The major US banks will report their quarterly earnings results in the coming week,” observed Fawad Razaqzada at ThinkMarkets. “After a very positive first quarter, lenders may very well struggle to top those numbers in Q2. Indeed, Wall Street analysts on average expect EPS and revenue to decline from levels seen in the first quarter. Still, with the Covid-19 vaccinations having been ramped up and the economy recovering stronger than expected, don’t expect to see many disappointments either. In fact, it is quite possible that with lowered expectations, banks might be able to beat consensus, though probably not like Q1 style. “One source of surprise in Q1 was the release of large reserves that some lenders had previously stowed away for loan losses that didn't materialise. Expect the banks to release more such funds as the impact of the pandemic was largely offset by significant intervention from the government and the Federal Reserve. The quieter market conditions in Q2 means profits from trading operations will most likely be lower than in Q1 for US banks,” he added. Neil Wilson at markets.com reckons investors will be looking at share buybacks and dividends after the Fed gave all 23 major institutions the green light to up shareholder returns again. “Trading revenues won’t be as strong as we have been used to, but loan loss provisions should continue to be written down, boosting headline EPS. Very strong numbers are expected, so banks have a lot of work to do and will require a major upside surprise this earnings season,” Wilson said. US macro data is not so much thin on the ground as non-existent, which gives traders more time to work themselves up into a tizzy over tomorrow’s consumer price index data. On the company front, Kaltura has slashed the indicated range for the price on its initial public offering. The company is expected to float at between US$9 and US$11, having previously hoped to price its shares at between US$14 and US$16. The new flotation price would value the video-on-demand specialist at up to US$1.36bn. Four things to watch for on Monday: The earnings diary is a little light today, although there are results expected from modelling software group Simulations Plus Inc (NASDAQ:SLP), Norwegian investment firm Ocean Yield ASA (OTCMKTS:OYIEF) and consumer electronics company VOXX International Corp (NASDAQ:VOXX) Shares in Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc (NYSE:SPCE) will be in focus after its VSS Unity spacecraft completed its first test flight with a full crew in the cabin, reaching an altitude of 53.5 miles just outside the Earth’s atmosphere Electric car maker Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) may also draw attention amid reports the company is facing a fine in Germany for unauthorised tank building at its car factory under construction near Berlin On the macro front, the calendar is thin, however, some traders may be interested in US consumer inflation expectations for June