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

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade, ahead of earnings from several companies. Data on initial jobless claims for the latest week and the Producer Price Index for July will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on wholesale inventories for June will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans is set to speak in Chicago at 9:30 a.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 11 points to 25,548.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded rose 2.50 points to 2,857.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 6.75 points to 7,479.25.

Oil prices traded mostly flat as Brent crude futures rose 0.04 percent to trade at $72.31 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.03 percent to trade at $66.92 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.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.09 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.11 percent and German DAX 30 index rising 0.26 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.74 percent, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.19 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.20 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.88 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 1.83 percent and India’s BSE Sensex climbed 0.36 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Barclays downgraded The Southern Company SO from Overweight to Equal-Weight.

Southern shares fell 0.81 percent to $46.50 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

• Nomad Foods Ltd NOMD reported upbeat earnings for its second quarter.
• Yelp Inc YELP reported better-than-expected results for its second quarter and lifted its guidance for the full year.
• Jack in the Box Inc. JACK reported stronger-than-expected earnings for its third quarter on Wednesday.
• Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd NCLH reported better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.