A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Edge Higher; All Eyes On Jobs Report

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade, ahead of earnings from several companies. Data on nonfarm payrolls and unemployment rate for July and the international trade report for June will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. US Services Purchasing Managers' Index for July will be released at 9:45 a.m. ET, while the ISM non-manufacturing index for July is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 16 points to 25,321, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 1 point to 2,829.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 7.25 points to 7,393.00.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.16 percent to trade at $73.33 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.16 percent to trade at $68.85 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the recent week will be released at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index gaining 0.34 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index climbing 0.53 percent and German DAX 30 index rising 0.44 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.77 percent, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.30 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.06 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.14 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index dropped 1 percent and India’s BSE Sensex climbed 1.05 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Baird downgraded Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc REGN from Outperform to Neutral.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals shares fell 0.53 percent to $394.89 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• DISH Network Corporation DISH reported better-than-expected results for its second quarter.
• LyondellBasell Industries N.V. LYB reported stronger-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.
• ITT Inc. ITT reported stronger-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.
• GoPro Inc GPRO reported a narrower-than-expected loss for its second quarter on Thursday.