1. Dow to get back on track, nearing record again
U.S. stock futures were pointing to a higher Wall Street open on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average less than 0.5% away from record highs. Monday's bounce-back after Friday's declines sent the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to all-time closing highs. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell testifies Tuesday and Wednesday in the first of his twice-a-year economic updates to Congress. In prepared testimony, Powell said the Fed is "closely monitoring" the coronavirus outbreak for impact on China and the global economy. Regarding U.S. interest rates, Powell said policy is well positioned. On Tuesday, hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio told attendees of the annual Milken Conference in Abu Dhabi that he thinks the coronavirus' hit to global markets is probably exaggerated.
2. Coronavirus cases continue to rise in China
Chinese health officials said overnight that confirmed cases of coronavirus in China rose to over 42,000, with the death toll there exceeding 1,000. Beijing's top economic adviser told Reuters on Tuesday that coronavirus may peak there in February, before cases then start to plateau and ease over the coming months. Meanwhile, the director-general of the World Health Organization warned that while almost all cases are in China, the virus poses a "very grave threat" for the rest of the world. The CDC confirms the 13th case in the United States.
3. New Hampshire primary pits Sanders against Buttigieg
New Hampshire residents vote Tuesday in the first-in-the-nation primary, eight days after the botched Iowa caucuses which saw former Mayor Pete Buttigieg edging Sen. Bernie Sanders for the most delegates. Sanders was polling first in New Hampshire with Buttigieg in second. Just after midnight, in an annual tradition in the tiny community of Dixville Notch, five residents cast their ballots. Three write-in votes went to billionaire ex-New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg. One of those write-ins was in the Republican primary. Sanders and Buttigieg split the other two votes. Voters registered as "undeclared" in New Hampshire can vote in either party primary.
4. Amazon wants to question Trump over JEDI contract
Amazon is seeking to question President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and former Defense Secretary James Mattis over a $10 billion Pentagon cloud contract awarded to Microsoft. Amazon Web Services is looking to depose seven "individuals who were instrumental" in the JEDI, or Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure, source selection. AWS sent CNBC a statement, which reads in part, "President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated his willingness to use his position as President and Commander in Chief to interfere with government functions."
5. Sprint soars on ruling in favor of T-Mobile deal
A federal judge on Tuesday ruled in favor of the $26 billion Sprint and T-Mobile deal. Shares of Sprint skyrocketed more than 70% in premarket trading. Reports on Monday evening indicated that a decision was coming. Shares of T-Mobile were up over 9% in trading ahead of Wall Street's open on Tuesday. However, the deal can't close until the California Public Utilities Commission approves the transaction, which still hasn't happened nearly two years after the deal's announcement.
— Reuters contributed to this report.
