US Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead Of GDP, Consumer Sentiment Data

US stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Data on GDP growth for the fourth quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, while the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for March will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 27.50 points to 17,575.50, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 2.05 points to 2,046.45. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 2.15 points to 4,308.60.

European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index dropping 0.04%, STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.58% and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.47%. French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.55% and London's FTSE 100 Index fell 0.37%. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average slipped 0.95%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.04%, China's Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.24% and India's BSE Sensex gained 1.06 points.

Analysts at Pacific Crest downgraded

from Outperform to Sector Perform and removed the price target of $30.00. EMC shares fell 1.57% to $25.43 in pre-market trading.