A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Housing Market Index

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. The housing market index for September will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 48 points to 26,150, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 4.75 points to 2,900.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 17 points to 7,482.00.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1.22 percent to trade at $79.00 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures gained 1.18 percent to trade at $69.72 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.18 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index climbing 0.08 percent and German DAX 30 index gained 0.13 percent. The UK’s FTSE index was trading higher by 0.15 percent, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.21 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.41 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.56 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.82 percent and India’s BSE Sensex dipped 0.78 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Pivotal Research downgraded Discovery Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA) from Hold to Sell.

Discovery shares fell 1.97 percent to $31.39 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE: AZO) reported better-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter.
• General Mills, Inc. (NYSE: GIS) reported upbeat earnings for its first quarter, while sales missed views.
• Oracle Corporation (NYSE: ORCL) reported upbeat earnings for its first quarter, while sales missed estimates. The company also announced it was adding $12 billion to its buyback plan.
• Univar Inc (NYSE: UNVR) announced plans to acquire Nexeo Solutions Inc (NASDAQ: NXEO) in a cash and stock transaction valued at $11.65 per share.