Global stocks are ripping higher on Monday.
Sentiment in markets is bullish following new polls from the UK over the weekend. They showed a shift toward a decision to remain in the European Union in the referendum on Thursday.
Near 8:57 a.m. ET, Dow futures were up 217 points (1.23%), S&P 500 futures were up 26 points (1.29%), and Nasdaq futures were up 56 points (1.30%).
It's not just the US indexes. The Stoxx Europe 600 rallied toward its best level since last August. Other major indexes across Europe and Asia were higher.
The vote on Britain's EU membership is arguably the big market-moving event of the week.
"While the global markets as distant as Asia and the US have experienced resonance of the effects of Brexit risk, we would expect the UK and European Union bourses to rally the most from a remain vote on Thursday," John Stoltzfus, chief market strategist at Oppenheimer, said in a note.
Investor concerns about a Brexit include a possible recession in the UK and setbacks to regional growth, Stoltzfus said.
Neck-and-neck
Britons are voting on Thursday to decide if the UK should remain a part of the EU — a choice they were promised by Prime Minister David Cameron after the country's 2015 election. Because of the UKs importance to the EU (it is one of the zone's largest economies and sources of investment) traders have worried as the pro-exit camp has gained momentum.
Over the weekend, those gains seemed to have stalled — though the polls show a dead heat between the two sides.
A poll for the Mail On Sunday by Survation gave the "In" campaign 45% of the vote, against 42% for "Out." A separate poll for The Sunday Times by YouGov had "Remain" at 44%, to 43% for "Leave", and an Opinium poll for the Observer put the two sides neck-and-neck at 44%.
Stocks are just one of several "risk" asset classes surging this morning. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures in New York rose 1.7%, to $49.39 per barrel. The pound jumped by the most since 2008, climbing to as high as 1.4672 against the dollar.
But Treasurys are bearing the brunt of this shift in sentiment. They fell, with the yield on the 10-year note up five basis points to 1.671%. Gold fell 0.89%, or $11.55 an ounce, to $1,283.25.
There's no economic data due today. On Tuesday, Fed chair Janet Yellen will testify on monetary policy before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.