US Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead Of Jobless Claims Report

US stock futures traded slightly lower in early pre-market trade. Data on weekly jobless claims and the current account for the fourth quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The general conditions index of the Philadelphia Fed's Business Outlook Survey for March and the Conference Board's index of leading indicators for February will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 13.50 points to 17,975.50, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 1.55 points to 2,090.95. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index fell 0.25 points to 4,420

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.71%, STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.57% and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.03%. French CAC 40 Index gained 0.04% and London's FTSE 100 Index rose 0.13%. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average slipped 0.35%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.45%, China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.14% and India's BSE Sensex slipped 0.53%. Japanese exports rose 2.4% y/y in February, while imports slipped 3.6%.

Analysts at Jefferies downgraded Zimmer Holdings, Inc.

from Buy to Hold. The price target for is set to $131.00. Zimmer Holdings shares rose 3.41% to close at $119.21 yesterday.