A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Mostly Flat Ahead Of Fed Speakers

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded mostly flat in early pre-market trade. San Francisco Bank President John Williams is set to speak in Washington at 1:35 p.m. ET, while Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic will speak in Atlanta at 12:40 p.m. ET. Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren is set to speak in Washington. Data on consumer credit for November will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 7 points to 25,260.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 2.25 points to 2,739.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 5.50 points to 6,661.75.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.30 percent to trade at $67.82 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures gained 0.50 percent to trade at $61.75 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.19 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.25 percent and German DAX 30 index gaining 0.31 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.13 percent, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.33 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.89 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 0.28 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.52 percent and India’s BSE Sensex climbed 0.58 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at H.C. Wainwright downgraded Alliqua Biomedical Inc (NASDAQ: ALQA) from Buy to Neutral.

Alliqua Biomedical shares rose 15.08 percent to $2.90 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• Kohl's Corporation (NYSE: KSS) reported that its combined sales for November and December rose 6.9 percent year-over-year. The company also raised its FY17 earnings guidance.
• Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE: DRI) raised its FY18 earnings guidance.
• Oragenics Inc (NYSE: OGEN) reported a 1-for-10 reverse stock split.
• Novo Nordisk A/S (ADR) (NYSE: NVO) proposed to buy Ablynx for up to €30.50 per share in cash.