A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Economic Reports

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Data on initial jobless claims for the latest week, the Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index for September and the current account for the second quarter will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Existing home sales report for August and the index of leading economic indicators for August is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 66 points to 27,077 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 7.4 points to 3,001.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 32.5 points to 7,885.50.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 2.3% to trade at $65.07 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 1.7% to trade at $59.07 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage 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 0.9%, STOXX Europe 600 Index rising 0.3% and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.1%. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.5%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.3%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.38%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell 1.07%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.46% and India’s BSE Sensex fell 1.29%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Goldman Sachs upgraded Hyatt Hotels Corporation H from Neutral to Buy and raised the price target from $88 to $91.

Hyatt shares fell 0.9% to close at $75.67 on Wednesday.

Breaking News

• Darden Restaurants, Inc. DRI reported upbeat earnings for its first quarter, while sales missed views. Darden also reported a $500 million buyback program.
• Herman Miller, Inc. MLHR reported stronger-than-expected results for its first quarter on Wednesday.
• Microsoft Corporation MSFT reported a $40 billion buyback plan. The company also raised quarterly dividend from 46 cents per share to 51 cents per share.
• United States Steel Corporation X issued Q3 earnings guidance below analyst estimates.