US Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead Of Jobless Claims Data

US stock futures fell in early pre-market trading. Data on weekly jobless claims and import prices for March will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the Federal Open Market Committee will issue minutes of its latest meeting at 2:00 p.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 17 points to 16,343.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 1.90 points to 1,862.90. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index dropped 5 points to 3,586.00.

European markets were mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index dropping 1.06%, London's FTSE 100 index gaining 0.08% and STOXX Europe 600 Index slipping 0.25%. German DAX 30 index dropped 0.16% and French CAC 40 Index fell 0.25%. French industrial production climbed 0.1% in February versus January, while the consumer price index gained 0.4% in March versus February. Asian markets ended mostly higher today. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.43 points, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index gained 1.51%, China's Shanghai Composite surged 1.38% and India's BSE Index jumped 0.06%.

Analysts at Bank of America downgraded Bed Bath & Beyond

from “buy” to “neutral.” The target price for Bed Bath & Beyond has been lowered from $87 to $72. Bed Bath & Beyond's shares closed at $67.91 yesterday.