A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

US stock futures are mostly flat this morning, as investors are awaiting weekly jobless-claims data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1 point to 12,575.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 0.60 points to 1,323.00. Nasdaq 100 futures dropped 2 points to 2,555.50.

European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index declined 0.82%, French CAC 40 index fell 0.89%. London's FTSE 100 Index moved down 1.10% and German DAX 30 index declined 0.70%. Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average gaining 0.86%, China's Shanghai Composite rising 1.39% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving down 0.15%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index fell 0.31% and India's Sensex gained 0.27%.

Analysts at Citigroup upgraded Legg Mason Inc

from “neutral” to “buy.” The target price for Legg Mason has been raised from $27.50 to $32.50. Legg Mason shares gained 1.66% to $24.45 in after-hours trading.