A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Edge Higher Ahead Of Economic Data

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade. An advance report on U.S. international trade in goods for November is schedule for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. The pending sales index for November is schedule for release at 10:00 a.m. ET, while the Dallas Fed manufacturing index for December will be released at 10:30 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 13 points to 28,623 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 1.2 points to 3,238.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 0.75 points to 8,784.00.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.5% to trade at $67.23 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 0.4% to trade at $61.94 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.4%, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.4% and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.6%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.4%, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.3%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.76%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.33%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.16% and India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.1%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Compass Point upgraded Lendingtree Inc (NASDAQ: TREE) from Neutral to Buy and announced a $340 price target.

LendingTree shares rose 1.2% to $297.81 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Nio Inc - ADR (NYSE: NIO) reported upbeat Q3 results. The company reported quarter-over-quarter growth in deliveries and guided Q4 deliveries of over 8,000 vehicles.
• Franchise Group Inc (NASDAQ: FRG) announced plans to acquire American Freight Group for $450 million in cash.
• AstraZeneca plc (NYSE: AZN) disclosed that the FDA has approved Lynparza for pancreatic cancer.
• Maxar Technologies Inc (NYSE: MAXR) agreed to sell MDA to Northern Private Capital for CAD $1 billion.