A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Edge Higher Ahead Of Economic Data

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded slightly higher in early pre-market trade. Data on retail sales for October, the Empire State manufacturing index for November and import prices for October will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on business inventories for September will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo is set to speak at the Wall Street Journal CEO Council in Washington, D.C. at 8:05 a.m. ET, while Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Rob Kaplan is set to speak in Dallas at 1:30 p.m. ET. Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer will speak at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. at 1:30 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 5 points to 18,825.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures gained 1.50 points to 2,162.75. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index rose 1.50 points to 4,697.50.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures gained 2.88 percent to trade at $45.71 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures also rose 2.94 percent to trade at $45.23 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.06 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.10 percent and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.07 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.43 percent, while French CAC 40 Index rose 0.17 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.03 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.46 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.11 percent and India’s BSE Sensex declined 1.92 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Raymond James upgraded Advance Auto Parts, Inc. AAP from Outperform to Strong Buy.

Advance Auto Parts shares rose 12.74 percent to $161.11 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• Home Depot Inc HD reported better-than-expected third quarter results.



• Zoe's Kitchen Inc ZOES reported in-line earnings for its third quarter, but revenue missed analysts’ expectations.



• Advance Auto Parts, Inc. AAP posted better-than-expected earnings for its third quarter on Monday.



• Nasdaq Inc NDAQ named Adena Friedman as president and CEO.