A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down; Crude Oil Falls 1%

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 29 points to 27,985 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 2.85 points to 3,143.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 7 points to 8,393.25.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 1% to trade at $63.74 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 1.1% to trade at $58.558 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.1%, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.2% and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.3%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.1%, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.5%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.33%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 0.01%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.08% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.10%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey upgraded Dow Inc. DOW from Hold to Buy and announced a $59 price target.

Dow shares rose 1.2 percent to $53.83 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• ArQule, Inc. ARQL agreed to be acquired by Merck & Co., Inc. MRK for $20 per share in cash.
• KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc. KALV disclosed that its Phase 2 trial of KVD001 did not meet its primary endpoint.
• Sanofi SA SNY announced plans to acquire Synthorx Inc THOR in a cash deal worth about $2.5 billion.
• UnitedHealth Group Inc UNH announced plans to buy Diplomat Pharmacy Inc DPLO for around $300 million.