A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

US stock futures are higher this morning, after upbeat Chinese trade data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 27 points to 13,354.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 3.60 points to 1,459.50. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 7 points to 2,729.00.

European markets were mixed today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index fell 0.01%, London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.12%, German DAX 30 Index surged 0.23% and French CAC 40 Index fell 0.23%. Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rising 0.70%, China's Shanghai Composite climbing 0.37% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index gaining 0.32%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.59% and India's Sensex fell 0.02%.

Analysts at RBC Capital downgraded VeriFone Systems

from “outperform” to “sector perform.” The target price for VeriFone has been lowered from $44 to $36. VeriFone shares gained 1.52% to close at $31.42 yesterday.