A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Up Ahead Of Fed Speakers

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank President Patrick Harker is set to speak in New York at 1:00 p.m. ET, while Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank President Neel Kashkari will speak in Madison, Wisconsin at 6:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 31 points to 27,689 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 3.4 points to 3,090.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 15.5 points to 8,265.25.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.7% to trade at $62.63 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.6% to trade at $57.19 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.3%, STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.3% and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.5%. The UK’s FTSE index was trading higher by 0.4%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.3%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.81%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.52%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.17% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.1%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at JMP Securities downgraded Box Inc (NYSE: BOX) from Market Outperform to Market Perform.

Box shares fell 1.2% to $16.25 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Grocery Outlet Holding Corp (NASDAQ: GO) reported better-than-expected results for its third quarter and raised 2019 earnings guidance.
• Edgewell Personal Care Co (NYSE: EPC) reported upbeat earnings for its fourth quarter.
• Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. (NYSE: LTS) agreed to be acquired by Advisor Group for $3.50 per share in cash.
• Fluent Inc (NASDAQ: FLNT) reported weaker-than-expected earnings for its third quarter.