A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down, BlackBerry Profit Tops Estimates

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Data on personal income and consumer spending for August and the Chicago PMI for September will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index for September will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams is set to speak in New York at 4:45 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 60 points to 26,413, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded fell 5.75 points to 2,914.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 20 points to 7,637.25.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.32 percent to trade at $81.98 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.01 percent to trade at $72.13 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 lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 1.52 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index falling 0.71 percent and German DAX 30 index dropped 1.33 percent. The UK’s FTSE index was trading lower by 0.53 percent, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.74 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.36 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.26 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.06 percent and India’s BSE Sensex slipped 0.27 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Morgan Stanley downgraded Phillips 66 Partners LP (NYSE: PSXP) from Equal-Weight to Underweight.

Phillips 66 Partners shares rose 1.35 percent to close at $51.03 on Thursday.

Breaking News

• Vail Resorts, Inc. (NYSE: MTN) reported narrower-than-expected loss for its fourth quarter, while sales missed views.
• Applied Optoelectronics Inc (NASDAQ: AAOI) lowered its sales guidance for the third quarter.
• BlackBerry Ltd (NYSE: BB) reported upbeat earnings for its second quarter.
• Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) shares dropped around 13 percent in pre-market trading after the SEC charged CEO Elon Musk, alleging securities fraud for his “Funding Secured” tweet.