A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Producer Price Index, Fed Speakers

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Data on initial jobless claims for the latest week and the Producer Price Index for October will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans will speak in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at 9:10 a.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Board of Governors Vice Chairman Richard Clarida is set to speak in Washington, DC at 9:10 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will testify before the House Budget Committee in Washington, DC at 10:00 a.m. ET. San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly is set to speak in San Francisco, California at 11:45 a.m. ET, while New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams will speak in San Francisco, CA at 12:00 p.m. ET. St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard is set to speak in Lousville, Kentucky at 12:20 p.m. ET, while Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan will speak in Stephenville, Texas at 5:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 35 points to 27,726 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded fell 4.4 points to 3,091.25. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 12.5 points to 8,253.25.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 1.1% to trade at $63.08 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 1% to trade at $57.69 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET, while the EIA’s weekly report on petroleum inventories will be released at 11:00 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.1%, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.1% and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.3%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.3%, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.1%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.85%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 1.82%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.33% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.42%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at HSBC downgraded Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) from Buy to Hold and announced a $65 price target.

Verizon shares fell 0.4% to $59.18 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Axonics Modulation Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: AXNX) reported the FDA approval for its Sacral Neuromodulation System for urinary clinical indications.
• Nice Ltd (NASDAQ: NICE) reported upbeat earnings for its third quarter.
• NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) reported better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.
• Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) reported upbeat results for its first quarter, but issued second-quarter guidance.