Nasdaq 100 Gains As Tesla and Inovio Shares Surge

Summary:
• Shares of Tesla and Inovio are surging this Monday, helping to boost the Nasdaq 100 as US efforts to contain the coronavirus appear to have picked up steam.

The Nasdaq 100 futures are gaining actively on Monday on renewed optimism that coronavirus cases in the US may have peaked. Further boost on the sentiment for the Nasdaq 100 comes from the strong performance of several stocks listed on the exchange. Inovio Pharmaceuticals is up by 9.3% in premarket trading and 135% for the year 2020, as the company announced Monday it was commencing the first dosing of patients in the Phase 1 trial of its coronavirus vaccine candidate, INO-4800. The vaccine is said to have shown promise in preliminary animal studies, and the Phase 1 trial will involve 40 individuals in 2 locations in the United States.
Also boosting the performance of the Nasdaq 100 futures is the stock performance of Tesla. Tesla stocks received an upgrade from analysts at Jeffries, who believe that it has a solid balance sheet. This upgrade is a reflection of the positive sentiment for this stock based on the vehicle delivery numbers it released on Friday, and this is boosting its premarket performance by 5.4% to the upside.
The Nasdaq 100 is currently up by more than 286 points, representing an increase of 3.81% on a day which has so far seen a reduction in the number of deaths and new cases in the US.

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Technical Outlook for Nasdaq 100

The Nasdaq 100’s daily candle is facing stiff resistance at the 7834.6 price level, having touched off that price several times last week and also in today’s trading. This is therefore the resistance to beat. If price is able to record two successive daily candle penetration endings above that level, the breakout is confirmed and the door will be opened for price to attempt hitting 8015.5 (cluster of highs seen in July 2019 and the 31 March 2020 high). Further upside could target 8442.5.

On the flip side, rejection at present levels will present an opportunity for a retest of 7508.9. This price level was more or less the support for last week’s price action. A breach of this level to the downside could be significant and may lead to further weakening towards 7241.2 (27 March 2019 and 6 August 2019).