A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting ISM manufacturing data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 33 points to 13,041.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 3.70 points to 1,418.10. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 12.50 points to 2,688.25.

European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.62%, London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.32%, French CAC 40 Index surged 0.98% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.53%. Asian markets ended mostly lower, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rising 0.13%, China's Shanghai Composite dropping 1.03% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gaining 0.49%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 1.19% and India's Sensex fell 0.18%.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs upgraded Dell

from “sell” to “buy.” The target price for Dell has been raised from $9 to $13. Dell shares gained 4.56% to $10.08 in pre-market trading.