US EQUITY OPEN: Stocks gain at the open as Trump downplays military force to acquire Greenland

OPEN: US stocks see relief at the open following geopolitical-induced downside on Tuesday. Fears over a US-EU military confrontation were eased after US President Trump at Davos said he "Won't use force against NATO". RUT leads gains, +1.3%, with SPX and NDX up around 0.8%. Sectors ex-staples are in the green. Energy, Materials, and Financials outperform. Communications see modest gains, with gains capped by Netflix (NFLX, -3%) Q1 guidance disappointing investors amid its pursuit for Warner Bros Discovery. In FX, the Dollar is mainly lower against major FX peers with Antipodes outperforming amid the strength in metals while CHF weakens as it's haven attraction abates given said easing fears. Although, the Dollar has pared some weakness in recent trade given the recent Trump comments. Treasuries are flat/mixed in Wednesday's trade ahead of the 20yr auction this US afternoon; little reaction was seen on Trump's NATO remark. For oil, prices are firmer supported by Trump resuming his tough stance on Iran ("will be wiped off the face of the Earth", if it attempts a Trump assassination" as well as continued supply disruptions out of Kazakhstan's Tengiz oil project. Spot gold is firmer, but amid the recent risk on sentiment, it pared some of its strength. 

STOCK SPECIFICS

• Netflix (NFLX): Despite modest earnings beat, as investor focus shifted to the costly & uncertain bidding war for WBD; Light Q1 profit view & paused share buybacks
• Progress Software (PRGS): EPS & revenue beat with strong next quarter & FY guidance.
• Kraft Heinz (KHC): Disclosed that Berkshire Hathaway may sell its 27.5% stake, valued at ~USD 7.7bln
• United Airlines (UAL): Top & bottom line beat with a solid outlook.
• NVIDIA (NVDA): CEO Huang plans to travel to China in late Jan. to reopen the AI chip market.
• Johnson & Johnson (JNJ): Profit missed.
• Truist Financial (TFC): Earnings & revenue fell short of expectations.    
• Halliburton (HAL): EPS & revenue topped Wall St. consensus.    
• Travelers (TRV): Profit & revenue. impressed, authorised additional $5bln share buybacks & remain highly confident in the outlook.