US STOCKS-Wall St set to open near record highs after Trump signs fiscal aid bill

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock
markets, click LIVE/ or type LIVE/ in a news window.)
* Travel, bank, energy stocks lead pre-market gains
* Futures up: Dow 0.5%, S&P 0.7%, Nasdaq 0.8%

(Adds comment; updates share prices)
By Devik Jain and Supriya R
Dec 28 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes were set to
open near record levels on Monday as President Donald Trump's
signing of a long-awaited $2.3 trillion pandemic aid bill
bolstered bets on an economic recovery, helping financial and
energy stocks.
In a sudden reversal late on Sunday, Trump backed down from
his threat to block the hard-fought bill, restoring unemployment
benefits to millions of Americans and averted a federal
government shutdown. "Trump signing the COVID relief and government spending bill
has gotten uncertainty out of the way, and the market right now
is on autopilot - creeping its way higher into the new year,"
said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research.
Trading volumes are expected to be slim in the final week of
the year, with stock markets being shut on Friday for New Year
holiday.
Airline shares were among the top gainers as the payroll aid
is expected to provide some relief to the battered sector.
Southwest Airlines LUV.N , Delta Air lines DAL.N , United
Airlines UAL.O and American Airlines AAL.O rose between 1.5%
and 2.8% in premarket trading.
Bank stocks, including those of Wells Fargo WFC.N and
Goldman Sachs GS.N , gained between 0.8% and 1.2%.
The rolling out of vaccines and a string of stimulus
measures have put the S&P 500 on track to rise about 15% this
year, with some of the biggest boost coming from technology
heavyweights Apple Inc AAPL.O and Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O .
However, tech stocks lost some fizz in recent weeks as
less-loved parts of the market such as energy, financials and
small caps took center stage on hopes of an economic rebound.
Investors are also assessing their bets on U.S. technology
stocks for the coming year against the backdrop of pricey
valuations and regulatory risks.
At 08:30 a.m. ET, S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were up 26.5
points, or 0.72%, Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were up 156 points, or
0.51%, and Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 104.25 points, or
0.82%.
Democrats in the U.S. Congress on Monday will put to vote a
proposal for higher pandemic relief payments for Americans,
although it appears unlikely to gain traction in the
Republican-controlled Senate. Fueling the global appetite for risk, Britain and European
Union clinched a lean post-Brexit trade deal on Thursday, while
the launch of a mass COVID-19 vaccination drive in Europe over
the weekend added to the upbeat mood.
U.S.-listed shares of Alibaba Group BABA.N fell 1.6%,
extending Thursday's loss of 13.34% after China launched an
anti-trust probe into the company.