US STOCKS-Wall St set to surge at open on recovery, vaccine hopes

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* Novavax jumps, to test vaccine candidate on humans
* Beaten down travel-related stocks surge
* Futures up: Dow 2.2%, S&P 2.5%, Nasdaq 1.6%

(Adds details; updates prices)
By Medha Singh and Uday Sampath Kumar
May 26 (Reuters) - Wall Street was set to surge at the open,
with the S&P 500 poised to breach a major technical barrier on
Tuesday as business restarts and optimism about a potential
coronavirus vaccine helped investors overlook Sino-U.S.
tensions.
Futures pointed to the benchmark index opening above 3,000
points, a key psychological level that could further bolster
risk appetite, and also above its 200-day moving average, a
closely watched long-term trend indicator.
U.S. biotech group Novavax Inc NVAX.O jumped nearly 16% in
premarket trading as it joined the race to test coronavirus
vaccine candidates on humans and enrolled its first
participants. Merck & Co Inc MRK.N advanced 3.6% as it announced plans
to develop two separate vaccines. The S&P 500 has risen about 35% from its March lows on hopes
of an eventual coronavirus antidote and easing of virus-related
curbs. It is now about 13% below its all-time high hit more than
three months ago.
"The markets are focusing more on healthcare related news
getting better and the possibility for a vaccine by the end of
the year and the potential for increased economic activity as
more and mores states reopen," said Art Hogan, chief market
strategist at National Securities in New York.
California has decided to reopen in-store retail businesses
and places of worship following shutdowns in one of the most
restrictive containment rules in the United States. However, some analysts warned markets might be too fast in
pricing a quick recovery from the coronavirus slump that put
millions of Americans out of their jobs and virtually halted
activity in major sectors.
"Business cycles don't simply end in two to three months and
that's what the market is pricing," said Patrick Fruzzetti,
managing director and senior research analyst at the Rosenau
Group.
"We're not going to go from 0 to 100 in a matter of couple
of months. In a way that some of these sectors are pricing. It's
going to be very slow."
The beaten down travel-related stocks soared with United
Airlines Holdings Inc UAL.O , online travel agency Expedia
Group Inc EXPE.O , hotel operator Marriott International Inc
MAR.O rising between 6% and 8%, while cruise companies
including Carnival Corp CCL.N gained about 10%.
S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 2.19% at 3,017.75 points at
9:03 a.m. ET (13:03 GMT). The futures contract broke through
2,988.38, a 200-day simple moving average, suggesting a strong
day ahead for U.S. stocks.
Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were up 618 points, or 2.53%, and the
Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 153.75 points, or 1.63%.
Later in the day, the Conference Board's data is expected to
show consumer confidence index edged up slightly after hitting a
six-year low in April.

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