A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Up; Dow Futures Rise Over 100 Points

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Eric Rosengren is set to speak at 10:00 a.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic will speak at 12:40 p.m. ET. The U.S. Treasury budget report for December is schedule for release at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 113 points to 28,890 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 12.1 points to 3,276.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 43.5 points to 9,021.75.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.2% to trade at $64.87 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.1% to trade at $58.97 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is schedule for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.1%, STOXX Europe 600 Index climbing 0.1% and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.1%. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.4%, while French CAC 40 Index gained 0.3%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.47%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 1.11%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.75% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.62%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Evercore ISI Group downgraded Spotify Technology SA (NYSE: SPOT) from In-Line to Underperform and announced a $115 price target.

Spotify shares fell 1.3% to $154.00 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• At Home Group Inc (NYSE: HOME) raised its guidance for the fourth quarter.
• Stage Stores Inc (NYSE: SSI) reported a 1.4% year-over-year rise in its holiday same-store sales. The company said it expects 2019 earnings to be $25 million-$30 million below the low end of its previously given guidance range.
• Woodward, Inc. (NASDAQ: WWD) and Hexcel Corporation (NYSE: HXL) announced plans to combine in an all-stock merger of equals.
• OncoCyte Corp (NYSE: OCX) announced plans to acquire Insight Genetics for $12 million.