US Stock Futures Surge Ahead Of Economic Data - FUJIFILM Holdings (OTC:FUJIF)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Data on consumer spending for February will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the pending home sales index for February will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. The Dallas Fed general business activity index for March will be released at 10:30 a.m. ET, while farm-prices data for March will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 98.50 points to 17,724.50, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 10.15 points to 2,062.65. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 29.45 points to 4,355.20.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.81%, STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.85% and German DAX 30 index gaining 1.44%. French CAC 40 Index climbed 1.07% and London's FTSE 100 Index rose 0.35%. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.65%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 1.51%, China's Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.59% and India's BSE Sensex gained 1.88%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Baird upgraded

Nike, Inc.NKE

from Neutral to Outperform. The price target for Nike has been raised from $102 to $115. Nike shares closed at $99.88 on Friday.

Breaking news

FUJIFILM Holdings FUJIF and Cellular Dynamics International ICEL today announced that the two companies have entered into a definitive agreement whereby Fujifilm will acquire CDI via an all-cash tender offer to be followed by a second step merger. To read the full news, click here.
Synageva BioPharma Corp. GEVA announced today the submission to the Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios (Cofepris) in Mexico for Kanuma as a treatment for patients with lysosomal acid lipase deficiency (LAL Deficiency), a rare genetic disease with significant morbidity and early mortality. To read the full news, click here.
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals SPPI today announced results of a clinical study of the stability of Captisol-enabled Melphalan versus the currently marketed, propylene glycol-containing melphalan formulation entitled, Solution Stability of Captisol-enabled Melphalan vs Marketed Melphalan Products. To read the full news, click here.
GNC Holdings, Inc. GNC today announced that it has reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General regarding the Company's Herbal Plus® products. To read the full news, click here.

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