Stocks rebound higher as tech advances ahead of Amazon and Alphabet earnings The major averages opened with solid gains, rebounding following a selloff at the end of last week in the S&P 500 that was the worst seen by the benchmark index since October. Sentiment recovered overnight following respectable readings on China and European manufacturing PMIs, while it has been reported that President Biden will meet with GOP senators on a relief package as the Democrats consider the potential to use a procedural move to act without GOP support. The earnings slate is heavy again this week, with 111 firms from the S&P 500 reporting. Among them, Amazon ($AMZN) and Alphabet ($GOOG) will highlight a busy Tuesday for quarterly reports. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., Markit's manufacturing PMI inched up to 59.2 in the final January reading after jumping 2 points to 59.1 in the preliminary reading. The ISM manufacturing index dipped 1.8 points to 58.7 in January after jumping 2.8 ticks to 60.5 in December. Construction spending rose 1.0% in December. Data from the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering shows there are now 103M confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide, including 26.2M in the U.S., and 2.2M deaths due to the disease, including 441,000 in the U.S. TOP NEWS: Interactive Brokers ($IBKR) announced that on Friday it lifted all trading restrictions on options in AMC Entertainment ($AMC), BlackBerry ($BB), Express ($EXPR), GameStop ($GME), Koss Corp. ($KOSS) and other options that experienced recent market volatility. The options, as well as the underlying stocks, are currently subject to increased margin requirements, which are subject to change depending on market conditions, the company said. Meanwhile, IG Group said it will restrict any new positions on GameStop and AMC Entertainment. Via Twitter, the online trading platform said that, "Due to extreme volatility, and to prioritize the service we give our existing clients, we are not allowing any new positions to be opened on the US stocks GameStop and AMC Entertainment." Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev has told investors that his survey of retail stock traders shows Square's ($SQ) Cash App benefited most from last week's drama surrounding Robinhood's trading restrictions on stocks like GameStop. Dolev, who noted that nearly 50% of those who reported leaving Robinhood said they would consider returning at some point, keeps a Buy rating on Square with a $300 price target. In other Robinhood news, the trading platform announced it has raised $3.4B to continue to invest in record customer growth, including $1B in funding announced on January 29. The round was led by Ribbit Capital, with participation from existing investors including ICONIQ, Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia, Index Ventures, and NEA with terms being finalized. Additionally, Reuters reported that Robinhood has held talks with lenders about raising $1B in debt so it can continue to fulfill orders for heavily shorted securities. Shares of silver producers including Pan American Silver ($PAAS), Wheaton Precious Metals ($WPM), Coeur Mining ($CDE), Buenaventura Mining ($BVN), Hecla Mining ($HL), First Majestic Silver ($AG), and Fortuna Silver Mines ($FSM) were up sharply in pre-market trading as the precious metal was linked to the wallstreetbets sub-reddit. Silver front-month futures were also up over 10%, briefly topping $30 per ounce, while the iShares Silver Trust ($SLV) ETF gained too. However, Reddit users are speculating that the user behind two posts promoting the iShares Silver Trust exchange traded product was potentially a manipulator, while others say it was a "pump-and-dump" scheme by hedge funds, Joe Deaux of Bloomberg reported. Meanwhile, shares of Ford Motor ($F) rose 3% after the company and Google announced a strategic partnership "to accelerate Ford's transformation and reinvent the connected vehicle experience." Ford has also named Google Cloud its preferred cloud provider as part of this new, six-year partnership, the companies reported. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Viela Bio ($VIE), which surged over 52% after agreeing to be acquired by Horizon Therapeutics ($HZNP) for $53 per share. Horizon shares were 6.3% higher after the news. Also higher was Tuscan Holdings Corp. ($THCB), which rose 56.5% after Microvast and the company announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement that will result in Microvast becoming a publicly listed company. Among the notable losers was Concert Pharmaceuticals ($CNCE), which dropped 28.3% after announcing that its Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate CTP-692 as an adjunctive treatment in patients with schizophrenia did not meet the primary endpoint or other secondary endpoints. Also lower was SunPower ($SPWR), which fell almost 10% after the company and EagleView announced a new agreement to reduce solar installation timelines and costs. Reviewing Monday's economic data:The ISM Manufacturing Index for January slipped to 58.7% (Briefing.com consensus 60.1%) from a downwardly revised 60.5% (from 60.7%) for December. The dividing line between expansion and contraction is 50.0%. January marked the eighth straight month the ISM Manufacturing Index has been above 50.0%.The key takeaway from the report is the recognition that manufacturing activity overall remained at a healthy level in January despite the surge in coronavirus cases, shutdown measures enacted to contain the spread of the coronavirus, and the political tumult in the U.S.Total construction spending increased 1.0% m/m in December (Briefing.com consensus 0.8%) after increasing an upwardly revised 1.1% (from 0.9%) in November. Total private construction spending rose 1.2% m/m and total public construction spending increased 0.5%.The key takeaway from the report is that residential construction spending continued at a solid clip, fueled by robust demand for new homes.The January IHS Markit Manufacturing PMI increased to 59.2 from 59.1 in December.Russell 2000 +7.7% YTDNasdaq Composite +4.0% YTDS&P 500 +0.5% YTDDow Jones Industrial Average -1.3% YTDMarket SnapshotDow30211.91+229.29(0.76%)Nasdaq13403.40+332.70(2.55%)SP 5003773.86+59.62(1.61%)10-yr Note -1/321.070NYSEAdv 2492 Dec 700 Vol 1.1 blnNasdaqAdv 2965 Dec 894 Vol 6.9 blnIndustry WatchStrong: Information Technology, Consumer Discretionary, Real Estate, Communication ServicesWeak: Consumer Staples, Energy, UtilitiesMoving the Market-- Stock market rebounds in buy-the-dip trade-- Leadership from the mega-cap stocks-- GameStop (GME) shares dropped 31%-- Encouraging manufacturing data, continued expectations for additional stimulusDisclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. My articles represent my personal opinion and analysis and should not be taken as investment advice. Readers should do their own research before making decisions to buy or sell securities. Trading and investing include risks, including loss of principal.If you liked this article, please click the LIKE (thumbs up) button.Feel free to leave any comments, question, or opinions. (Sign-up if you haven't already done so).Follow us/bookmark us and check back occasionally for additional articles or comments on our page...Wild Tiger Trading - start/main page..