A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

US stock futures are lower this morning, as investors are awaiting economic data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 20 points to 12,925.00 and S&P 500 index futures fell 3.20 points to 1,356.90. Nasdaq 100 futures declined 4.25 points to 2,586.75.

European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index dropped 0.82%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved down 0.53%, French CAC 40 index fell 0.55% and German DAX 30 index dropped 1.05%. Asian markets ended higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surging 0.96%, China's Shanghai Composite rising 0.93% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving up 0.09%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.33% and India's Sensex dropped 283 points.

Analysts at Needham downgraded Dell Inc

from “buy” to “hold.” Dell shares dropped 5.05% to $17.29 in the after-hours trading session.