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* Tesla invests $ 1.5 billion in bitcoin; crypto stock jump
* Disney and Cisco rise ahead of this week’s results
* Rising futures: Dow 0.45%, S&P 0.37%, Nasdaq 0.41% (Add comment, details; update prices)
February 8 (Reuters) – Wall Street’s major indexes were set to hit record highs on Monday’s opening, with investors placing risky bets in the hope that a fiscal relief package would lead to a rapid economic recovery.
Oil prices reached their highest level in more than a year, raising Marathon Oil Corp, Schlumberger NV, Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp and Occidental Petroleum Corp between 1% and 1.9% before the market.
Last week, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq registered their best weekly performance since the United States elections in early November, with optimistic gains and economic data.
The sentiment was also reinforced by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s comment on Sunday that if Congress passes the $ 1.9 trillion plan, the country would return to full employment next year.
The United States Congress passed a budget plan on Friday that would allow a coronavirus relief bill to be passed in the coming weeks without Republican support.
“There is an increasing likelihood of much closer to the $ 1.9 trillion stimulus being approved than a smaller number,” said Jim Besaw, director of investments at GenTrust in Florida.
“There may be a potential setback after a stimulus package is downloaded – buy the rumor, sell the suit.”
Progress in vaccination efforts and optimistic gains in the fourth quarter have helped investors dispel fears of a short-term downturn in stocks due to high ratings and increased coronavirus infections.
Bitcoin rose more than 10% to a record high after Tesla Inc. said it had invested about $ 1.5 billion in the cryptocurrency and would start accepting payment in bitcoins for its cars and other products.
Tesla’s shares were up about 2%, while cryptocurrency miner Riot Blockchain and Marathon Patent Group were up more than 20% each.
At 8:33 am ET, the Dow E-minis rose 140 points, or 0.45%, and the S&P 500 E-minis rose 14.25 points, or 0.37%. Nasdaq 100 E-minis rose 56 points, or 0.41%.
Walt Disney Co, Cisco Systems Inc and General Motors Co were up between 1.6% and 2.8% ahead of their earnings reports this week.
The S&P 500 companies were now on track to report profit growth for the fourth quarter, as opposed to a previous decline forecast, according to Refinitiv’s IBES data.
Hasbro Inc. rose 2.2% after the toy maker surpassed analysts’ quarterly revenue estimates due to increased demand for its “Magic: The Gathering” board games and collectible cards. (Reporting by Devik Jain, Shreyashi Sanyal and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Arun Koyyur)