US Stock Futures Gain Ahead Of Fed Policy Decision - Boeing (NYSE:BA)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures surged in early pre-market trade, ahead of economic data. The ADP national employment report for July will be released at 8:15 a.m. ET, while GDP growth data for the second quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Federal Open Market Committee will announce its policy decision at 2:00 p.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 35 points to 16,880.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 4.60 points to 1,967.60. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 12.75 points to 3,965.00.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.69%, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.06%. German DAX 30 index rose 0.09%, French CAC 40 Index declined 0.13% and London's FTSE 100 Index dropped 0.05%. French consumer confidence remained unchanged at 86 in July, while Spain economy rose 0.6% in the second quarter versus the first quarter. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.18%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged 0.37%, China's Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.09% and India's Sensex jumped 0.37%.. Japan's industrial production dropped 3.3% in June, versus a 0.7% gain in May.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Bank of America upgraded Twitter

TWTR

from Neutral to Buy. Twitter's shares gained 25.89% to $48.58 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

WellPoint WLP reported better-than-expected second-quarter profit. The Indianapolis, Indiana-based company posted a quarterly net income of $731 million, or $2.56 per share, compared to $800 million, or $2.64 per share, in the year-ago period. To read the full news, click here.
Le Gaga Holdings GAGA today announced that it has entered into a definitive Agreement and Plan of Merger with Harvest Parent Limited, a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability, and Harvest Merger Limited, a Cayman Islands exempted company with limited liability. To read the full news, click here.
Israel's Nice Systems NICE posted a weaker-than-expected second-quarter and maintained its forecast for the full year. To read the full news, click here.
Boeing BA is forecasting continued strong growth in demand for commercial aviation pilots and maintenance technicians as the global fleet expands over the next 20 years. To read the full news, click here.

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