US OPEN: Wall Street opens higher after Putin comments

• US stocks opened higher
• Russia says it will withdraw some of its troops from Ukraine
• 'Of course' we don't want war in Europe, says Vladimir Putin
• More companies are investing in Rivian (RIVN.US)

Upbeat moods prevail on Wall Street as three main averages add around 1% each as geopolitical tensions ease a bit. Immediately after the end of the official meeting between Vladimir Putin and the German Chancellor Scholz, further announcements were presented which indicate Russia appeared to be backing away from an immediate invasion of Ukraine. President Putin stated that he did not want a war in Europe and confirmed the withdrawal of some of the troops stationed at the border with Ukraine. Tanks and armored vehicles from Crimea were also withdrawn. However, the Russian president said that he has concerns negotiations might get stalled. At the same time, Fed's tightening plans remain in the spotlight as traders await the FOMC minutes tomorrow for further clarification if the central bank will deliver a 50 bps rate hike next month.

US100 broke above the local resistance zone around 14350 pts, which is marked with lower limit of the 1:1 structure, earlier broken lower boundary of the downward channel and 23.6% Fibonacci retracement of the upward wave launched in March 2020. If current sentiment prevails, upward move may accelerate towards psychological resistance at 15000 pts which is marked with the upper limit of the 1:1 structure. Source: xStation5

Company news:

Rivian (RIVN.US) stock jumped nearly 6.0% after reports that seven state government employee pension funds as well as a few hedge funds invested in the EV-maker in Q4 2021.

Rivian Automotive (RIVN.US) stock rose sharply in the first part of yesterday's session and managed to break above the upper limit of the triangle formation. Nevertheless buyers failed to break above the  above 23.6% Fibonacci retracement of the last downward wave. Until price sits below this level, another downward move towards support at $50.25 may be launched. Source: xStation5

Intel (INTC.US) stock jumped over 1.0% in premarket after the Wall Street Journal reported that the major chip manufacturer is willing to acquire Israeli chipmaker Tower Semiconductor for nearly $6 billion.

Monster Beverage (MNST.US) and  Constellation Brands (STZ.US) shares rose 2.2% and 3.1% in premarket respectively after Bloomberg reported that merger talks between both companies are progressing. Potential agreement could be reached within weeks. 

Gap (GPS.US) shares fell nearly 2.0% in premarket after Bank of America downgraded its stance on the clothes retailer to ‘underperform’ from ‘neutral’, saying its Old Navy brand will struggle to replicate last year’s impressive first half sales in 2022.

Arista Networks (ANET.US) stock surged more than 10.0% in premarket after the networking software and services company posted quarterly earnings of 82 cents per share, beating analysts’ estimates of 73 cents per share. Revenue topped market expectations and the company also issued an upbeat forecast.