Today's Wall Street outlook: Steady after a strong week since November 2020.

BY THE NUMBERS

The Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq each logged their best weekly performances since November 2020, with the Nasdaq remaining in a correction. However, U.S. stock futures dropped slightly Monday after a 737-800 jet crashed with 132 people on board in China, causing the Dow to fall 5% in the premarket.

On Monday, the price of oil per barrel increased by 4% to $109 as European Union nations considered joining the United States' Russian oil embargos. The price of oil rose to around 2.24% following last week's first interest rate hike in more than three years, and Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is set to speak at 12 p.m. ET. (CNBC)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.a) announced Monday morning that it had agreed to purchase insurance company (Y) for $11.6 billion, or $848.02 per share, in cash. Alleghany shares, which closed at $676.75 on Friday, rose toward the buyout price in Monday's premarket. The deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year, followed Berkshire's Class A shares reaching a record high last week. (CNBC)

IN THE NEWS TODAY

The Boeing 737-800 jet operated by China Eastern Airlines crashed in Guangxi on Monday, killing 123 passengers and nine crew members. The incident has raised concerns about Boeing's safety record, following a series of major crashes in recent years.

President Biden has added a stop in Poland to his trip to Europe this week for urgent talks with NATO and European allies about Russia's offensive in Ukraine. Poland, a crucial ally in the Ukraine crisis, is hosting thousands of American troops and taking in more Ukrainian refugees than any other nation. White House officials have stated that Biden has no plans to travel to Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials rejected a Russian demand for a surrender in Mariupol in exchange for safe passage out of the besieged strategic port city. In the capital Kyiv, Russian shelling devastated a shopping center near the city center. Britain's Defense Ministry reported that Ukraine's resistance had kept the bulk of Russian forces more than 15 miles from the center of Kyiv.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, 73, has been hospitalized since Friday due to an infection. Despite this, he plans to participate in the cases this week even if he misses the arguments. The court provided no additional details about the infection, but said Thomas was being treated with antibiotics and his “flu-like symptoms” were abating. Meanwhile, the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to begin confirmation hearings Monday for Ketanji Brown Jackson, Biden’s pick to succeed retiring liberal justice Stephen Breyer. She would be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court. (AP)

Domestic coronavirus cases could increase again due to a highly contagious Covid omicron variant, BA.2, which is about 50% to 60% more transmissible than omicron but does not seem to be more severe, according to U.S. health experts.

Disney's future is being impacted by a rift between Bob Chapek and Bob Iger, who had a falling out and rarely communicate.

CNBC has learned that (GS) is close to becoming the first major U.S. bank to trade an over-the-counter crypto transaction.

STOCKS TO WATCH

Private-equity firm Thoma Bravo agreed to buy out business planning software company PLAN for $10.7 billion, or $66 per share in cash. PLAN's stock had closed at $50.59 per share Friday and surged 28% in the premarket.

Nielsen's stock price dropped 18.6% in premarket trading after the company rejected a $9.13 billion takeover bid of $25.40 per share from a private-equity consortium, which Nielsen deemed significantly undervalued the company, best known for its TV ratings.

Softbank sold its $2.1 billion stake in Cruise, a division of General Motors (GM), and GM announced it would invest an additional $1.35 billion in the cruise industry, replacing funds that Softbank had pledged to provide. Initially, GM's stock price fell more than 1% in the premarket, but it later recovered.

At the end of March 2023, SAP (SAP) fell 2% in the premarket. The German business software company's Chief Financial Officer, Luka Mucic, is departing.

Manchester United's shares were upgraded to buy from hold by Deutsche Bank, which believes the soccer team's shares are undervalued compared to its peers in sports and live events. Manchester United gained 1.6% in premarket action.

NIO stated that it has no immediate plans to increase the prices of its electric vehicles, although it remains flexible on pricing. However, competitors such as TSLA and BYD have recently raised their prices due to rising material costs.

RBC upgraded BlackBerry's communication software company to sector perform from underperform, resulting in a 2.1% increase in the premarket.

WATERCOOLER

The eight regional semifinal March Madness matchups have been set, and among the teams in the Sweet 16 are top men's seeds Gonzaga, Kansas, and Arizona, as well as little Saint Peter's, the giant killer and only the third No. 15 seed to make it this far in the NCAA Tournament. (AP)