A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Fed Meeting

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. The Federal Open Market Committee will begin two-day policy meeting today. The Producer Price Index for February will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 27 points to 20,816.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 4 points to 2,367.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 7.25 points to 5,392.00.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures gained 0.74 percent to trade at $51.73 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.72 percent to trade at $49.29 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is schedule for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.46 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.11 percent and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.05 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.20 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.15 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.12 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 0.01 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.07 percent and India’s BSE Sensex rose 1.71 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Guggenheim upgraded Walt Disney Co DIS from Neutral to Buy.

Disney shares rose 0.35 percent to $111.91 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• Euronet Worldwide, Inc. EEFT proposed to acquire Moneygram International Inc MGI for $15.20 per share. The offer follows a $13.25 per share proposal from Ant Financial in January.



• Bill Ackman sold his entire position of Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc VRX. Pershing Square, the activist investor's firm, has exited its 27.2 million share position at $11. Ackman will also step off the company's board.



• DSW Inc. DSW reported better-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter, but sales missed expectations.



• Ruby Tuesday, Inc. RT disclosed that it is exploring strategic alternatives. The company reported preliminary Q3 sales of $225.7 million.