A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of FOMC Meeting

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade after the Nasdaq tumbled 2% in the previous session. Investors are awaiting earnings results from Caleres, Inc. CAL, Citi Trends, Inc. CTRN and JOYY Inc. YY.

The Federal Open Market Committee will begin its two-day policy meeting today. The Producer Price Index for February and Empire State manufacturing index for March will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 136 points to 32,808.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures slipped 16.50 points to 4,155.50. Futures for the Nasdaq index fell 40.50 points to 13,005.00.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 5.6% to trade at $100.87 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 5.7% to trade at $97.18 a barrel. The API’s report on crude oil stocks will be released today.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 81,216,260 with around 991,030 deaths. India reported a total of at least 42,996,060 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 29,382,190 cases.

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A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index declined 1.8%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index fell 1.3% and London’s FTSE 100 fell 1.3%. The French CAC 40 Index fell 1.8%, while German DAX dipped 1.8%. French consumer price inflation rate accelerated to 3.6% year-over-year in February from 2.9% in the prior month. The UK unemployment rate fell to 3.9% during the three months to January 2022, recording the lowest level in two years, while number of people in work dropped by 12,000 on quarter to 32.493 million.

Asian markets traded mostly lower today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.15%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dipped 5.72% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 4.95%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.7%, while India’s BSE SENSEX fell 1.3%. China's retail trade climbed 6.7% year-over-year in January-February combined, while industrial production increased by 7.5% year-over-year in the same period. Australia’s Residential Property Price Index increased by 4.7% quarter-over-quarter in the fourth quarter.

Broker Recommendation

Piper Sandler downgraded Coupa Software Incorporated COUP from Overweight to Neutral and lowered the price target from $230 to $70.

Coupa Software shares fell 29.8% to $63.08 in pre-market trading.

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Breaking News

• Coupa Software Incorporated COUP reported upbeat results for its fourth quarter. The company, meanwhile, said it expects Q1 revenue of $189 million to $191 million and sees subscription revenue of $171 million to $173 million.
• Ford Motor Co F on Monday revealed plans to launch seven new electric vehicle models in Europe by 2024 and achieve sales of 600,000 EV units a year by 2026.
• Vail Resorts, Inc. MTN reported downbeat results for its second quarter on Monday.
• Tesla Inc TSLA on Monday raised the prices of its electric vehicles in the U.S. and China, the second such hike in a week amid inflationary pressure on raw material and logistics.

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