A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Existing-Home Sales Report

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. The FHFA House Price Index for January will be released at 9:00 a.m. ET, while data on existing home sales for February will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 39 points to 20,588.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 1.75 points to 2,340.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 4 points to 5,334.25.

Oil prices traded lower as Brent crude futures dropped 1.22 percent to trade at $50.34 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.57 percent to trade at $47.67 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index dropping 0.31 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.65 percent and German DAX 30 index falling 0.49 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.78 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.47 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 2.13 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.11 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.50 percent and India’s BSE Sensex fell 1.08 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus downgraded General Mills, Inc. (NYSE: GIS) from Buy to Hold.

General Mills shares fell 0.83 percent to close at $59.76 on Tuesday.

Breaking news

• Nike Inc (NYSE: NKE) reported upbeat earnings for its third quarter, while sales missed estimates.
• Winnebago Industries, Inc. (NYSE: WGO) reported better-than-expected results for its second quarter.
• FedEx Corporation (NYSE: FDX) reported weaker-than-expected earnings for its third quarter and reaffirmed its earnings outlook for FY17.
• Perry Ellis International, Inc. (NASDAQ: PERY) posted upbeat earnings for its second quarter on Wednesday.