A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of GDP Data, Fed Speakers

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade.

Data on initial jobless claims for the latest week and fourth-quarter GDP will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Chicago PMI for February is schedule for release at 9:45 a.m. ET. The Kansas City Fed manufacturing index for February will be released at 11:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Bank Vice Chairman Richard Clarida is set to speak in Washington, DC at 8:00 a.m., while Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic will speak in Atlanta, GA at 8:50 a.m. ET. Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick Harker is set to speak in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 12:15 p.m. ET, while Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Rob Kaplan will speak in San Antonio, TX at 1:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 38 points to 25,970, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 6.25 points to 2,788.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index dipped 25.5 points to 7,096.25.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures fell 0.6 percent to trade at $65.97 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.2 percent to trade at $56.82 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 mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.3 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.3 percent and German DAX 30 index declined 0.2 percent. The UK’s FTSE index was trading lower by 0.53 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.1 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.79 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.43 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index dipped 0.44 percent and India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.11 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Piper Jaffray downgraded Booking Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: BKNG) from Overweight to Neutral and lowered the price target from $2,100 to $1,800.

Booking shares fell 9.5 percent to $1,724.87 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• HP Inc (NYSE: HPQ) reported in-line earnings for its first quarter, while sales missed expectations.
• SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) reported a narrower-than-expected loss for its fourth quarter.
• Fitbit Inc (NYSE: FIT) reported upbeat results for its fourth quarter, but issued weak first-quarter earnings guidance.
• Booking Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: BKNG) reported better-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter, while sales missed estimates.