A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Rise As Investors Await Earnings

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade, ahead of earnings from several companies.

Data on motor vehicle sales for October will be released today. Data on initial jobless claims for the latest week and nonfarm productivity for the third quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Markit manufacturing PMI for October is schedule for release at 9:45 a.m. ET. Data on construction spending for September and the ISM manufacturing index for October will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 141 points to 25,218, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 14.75 points to 2,725.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 35.75 points to 7,011.25.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.59 percent to trade at $75.46 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.84 percent to trade at $64.76 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.83 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index surging 0.74 percent and German DAX 30 index climbed 0.98 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.42 percent, while French CAC 40 Index jumped 0.40 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 1.06 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 1.75 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.13 percent and India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.03 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at BMO Capital downgraded Pfizer Inc. PFE from Outperform to Market Perform.

Pfizer shares fell 0.3 percent to $42.94 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Encana Corp ECA announced plans to buy Newfield Exploration Co. NFX in a $5.5 billion deal.
• CIGNA Corporation CI reported better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter and raised its FY18 guidance.
• DowDuPont Inc DWDP reported upbeat earnings for its third quarter, while sales missed views. The company also announced a $3 billion share buyback plan.
• Ball Corporation BLL posted downbeat earnings for its third quarter, while sales exceed estimates.