US stock futures rose Tuesday as investors hoped for the strong 2Q earnings season.Investors considered the potential impact of the Delta coronavirus variant on economic growth and the spread of it.Tencent's criticism in China has dragged down the stock and raised concerns about regulatory pressure.Subscribe to our daily newsletter 10 Things Before The Opening Bell.US stock futures rose on Tuesday after investors balanced healthy second-quarter earnings with concerns about the spread and impact of the COVID Delta variant on economic growth.The markets pointed to a return of strength at the open. S&P 500 futures were up 0.37%, Dow Jones futures 0.49% higher and Nasdaq futures rose 0.14% at last check at 6 :39 a.m. E.T.Investors seemed to be buoyed by strong corporate earnings and positive progress made by Biden's infrastructure bill. On Tuesday, there will be a new set of quarterly financial updates, featuring Eli Lilly and Fiat Chrysler, BMW, and Marriott.Investors were concerned about the rapid spread of the Delta variant in China and the US, and began to raise concerns as they considered the possibility for a slowdown and higher COVID-19 case numbers."A number of US states have reinstituted mask mandates and tightened restrictions. The optimism of a few week ago is now being replaced with doubts about how resilient the recovery that we've seen this year, as we head towards the autumn and the weather gets colder," Michael Hewson chief market analyst at CMC Markets said.Tuesday's close of Asian equity markets was lower due to an increase in COVID case numbers. Tokyo's Nikkei225 lost 0.5% and Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%.Markets were shaken Tuesday by fears about China's renewed regulatory pressure. A Chinese state-run media outlet called online gaming "spiritual opioid" and "electronic drug" on Tuesday. This prompted fears that Beijing might crack down on online entertainment providers. Tencent's stock price plunged as high as 10%.Jeffrey Halley, OANDA senior market analyst, stated that even the most subtle warnings have been ignored over the past few weeks. "It seems that regulatory risk in China is still alive and well."European markets opened the session higher on Monday, based on gains attributed to upbeat manufacturing data and other economic data. Frankfurt's DAX rose 0.14%, London’s FTSE 100 rose 0.34%, and the Euro Stoxx 50 was 0.1% higher.The yield on the US 10-year Treasury Note rose to 1.199%, an increase of 2.7 basis points. After weaker than expected US manufacturing data, bond yields rose and then fell. Investors are looking for signs that the economy is slowing down, which could change the Federal Reserve's decision on when and how to reduce its asset purchases.Oil prices rose, recovering from losses caused by COVID-19 restrictions. Brent crude rose 0.4% to $73.24/barrel, while WTI crude gained 0.46 percent at $71.59/barrel.
