A Peek Into The Market Before The Opening Bell

Pre-open movers
US stock-index futures seesawed between gains and losses today, indicating a troubled day for broader market after a three-day rally. While futures on Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 7 points, those on S&P 500 added a half point to 1,067.50. Meanwhile, Nasdaq 100 futures slipped a quarter point to 1,797.70.

A Peek Into Global Markets
European shares were higher for the fourth successive session today, with miners and banks leading the advance. While STOXX Europe 600 Index added 0.47%, London’s FTSE 100 Index is up 0.24%.

Most Asian markets rallied today, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average climbing 0.52%, and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 advancing 0.92%. Meanwhile, China's Shanghai Composite soared 2.31%.

Broker Recommendation
Citigroup (NYSE: C) rated Motorola (NYSE: MOT) a "buy" with a $10 price target, saying that the company is benefiting from the popular of the Android smart phone. The Citigroup report said Motorola's June quarter results were likely inline with or slightly above Street estimates and that September guidance will probably inline or slightly above estimates.”

Breaking news

• Google Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) is set to secure its foothold in the fast-growing Chinese Internet market, after Beijing renewed GOOG’s license. JP Morgan considers the renewal of Google’s license by the Chinese authorities as the legal re-registration of the "Google.cn” domain name in the country. To read the full story, click here.
• TOTAL S.A's (NYSE: TOT) weak near- to medium-term production outlook and the risks related to the present constrained commodity environment have led Zacks to downgrade the long-term recommendation for the stock to "underperform" from "neutral" with a target of $42.00. To read the full report, click here.
• Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) surprised the Street by a hefty margin when it reported same-store sales Thursday morning. The trendy apparel retailer said sales at stores open one year or longer grew by 9% in June. Analysts were expecting an increase of 2.8%. To read the full analysis, click here.

Read more from Benzinga's Markets.