Stock futures trade higher after Monday's rally

U.S. equity futures are trading higher after the S&P 500 rose for a fourth session in the last five to begin the week.

The major futures indexes are indicating a rise of 0.2 percent when trading begins on Tuesday.

Asian shares traded mixed Tuesday after a rally in U.S. stocks.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei fell 0.8 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.9 percent and China's Shanghai Composite was off 0.1 percent.

In Asia, the Monetary Authority of Singapore eased policy Monday, and the central bank of China has also cut a key interest rate.

China’s manufacturing rebounded in March as authorities relaxed anti-disease controls and allowed factories to reopen, an official survey showed Tuesday, but an industry group warned the economy has yet to fully recover.

In Europe, London's FTSE gained 1.3 percent, Germany's DAX rose 1.5 percent and France's CAC added 0.6 percent.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

The Wall Street rally tacked more gains onto a recent upswing for the market, which is coming off the best week for the S&P 500 in 11 years, albeit after falling into bear market territory. Optimism is building that the worst of the selling may be approaching, but markets around the world are still wary as leaders work to nurse their economies through the pandemic. The S&P 500 remains 22.4 percent below its record set last month.

The S&P 500 rose 3.4 percent Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 3.2 percent and the Nasdaq gained 3.6 percent.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
I:DJI	DOW JONES AVERAGES	44296.51	+426.16	+0.97%
SP500	S&P 500	5969.34	+20.63	+0.35%
I:COMP	NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX	19003.651134	+31.23	+0.16%

A surge for health care stocks led the way at the week's open. Johnson & Johnson leaped 8 percent after saying it expects to begin human clinical studies on a vaccine candidate for COVID-19 by September. Abbott Laboratories jumped 6.4 percent after saying it has a test that can detect the new coronavirus in as little as five minutes.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
JNJ	JOHNSON & JOHNSON	155.15	-0.34	-0.22%
ABT	ABBOTT LABORATORIES	117.76	+0.50	+0.43%

Stocks jumped last week after the Federal Reserve promised to buy as many Treasurys as it takes to get lending markets running smoothly and Capitol Hill reached a deal on a $2.2 trillion rescue package for the economy.

Forced selling by investors needing to raise cash is easing, according to Morgan Stanley strategists. They say another pullback in stocks is likely, but current levels offer some buying points for investors willing to wait six to 12 months.

CORONAVIRUS STIMULUS CASH: DON’T WAIT FOR YOUR CHECK IN THE MAIL

Economists expect a number of weak reports on the economy to come in through the week. The lowlight will likely be Friday's jobs report, where economists expect to see the steepest drop in the nation's payrolls since the Great Recession.

The number of known infections around the world has topped 780,000, according to Johns Hopkins University. The United States has the highest number in the world, more than 160,000.

Most people who contract COVID-19 have mild or moderate symptoms, which can include fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause pneumonia and require hospitalization.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

More than 37,000 have died worldwide due to COVID-19, but more than 160,000 have also recovered.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.