A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

Pre-open movers US stock futures are lower this morning. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 20 points to 13,122.00 and S&P 500 index futures fell 2.50 points to 1,413.50. Nasdaq 100 futures declined 4.75 points to 2,631.25. A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index declined 0.40%, London's FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.22%, French CAC 40 Index declined 0.60% and German DAX 30 index fell 0.58%. Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average gaining 0.07%, China's Shanghai Composite surging 1.07% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.14%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.39% and India's Sensex dropped 0.07%. Broker Recommendation Analysts at RW Baird upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch Co ANF from “neutral” to “outperform.” The target price for Abercrombie & Fitch has been raised from $48 to $55. Abercrombie & Fitch shares gained 2.36% to close at $46.39 on Friday. Breaking news

• Cell Therapeutics CTIC today announced that its Board of Directors has approved certain amendments to CTI's existing shareholder rights plan to decrease the exercise price of the preferred stock purchase rights under the Rights Plan from $14.00 to $8.00 and to extend the "final expiration date" from the close of business on the third anniversary of January 7, 2010, to the close of business on December 3, 2015. To read the full news, click here.
• Cohu COHU today announced that it has agreed to acquire Ismeca Semiconductor Holding SA from Schweiter Technologies AG for $54.5 million, plus acquired cash, to be funded out of Cohu's existing cash reserves. To read the full news, click here.
• Lear LEA today announced its new automotive wiring plant is scheduled to open in 2013 in Morocco's Amer Saflia area and create approximately 700 jobs, expected to increase significantly over upcoming years based on the projected growth in Lear's Electrical Power Management Systems business. To read the full news, click here.
• B/E Aerospace BEAV today announced that the Company has been awarded four major aircraft cabin interior programs. To read the full news, click here.