A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts

Pre-open movers US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting economic data. Crude oil prices surged above $106 a barrel. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 48 points to 12,069.00 and S&P 500 futures gained 6.10 points to 1,298.20. Nasdaq 100 futures jumped 17 points to 2,282.00. A Peek Into Global Markets Positive sentiment ruled the European markets today. While STOXX Europe 600 Index has gained 0.56%, London's FTSE 100 Index moved up 0.91%. Asian markets ended mixed, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average dropping 0.15%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 moving up 1.01% and China's Shanghai Composite falling 0.06%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.39% and India's Sensex climbed 0.80%. Broker Recommendation Analysts at FBR Capital downgraded Bank of America Corporation BAC from “outperform” to “market perform.” The target price for BAC has been lowered from $18 to $15. BAC shares fell 1.66% to close at $13.65 yesterday. Breaking news

• Scholastic Corporation SCHL today reported results for the fiscal 2011 third quarter ended February 28, 2011. Revenue for the third quarter was $393.7 million compared to $398.8 million a year ago. To read the full news, click here.
• Moody's downgraded its debt ratings of 30 Spanish banks on Thursday by one or more notches, citing a week outlook on the country. To read the full news, click here.
• Combatting criticism that the company doesn't enforce copyright laws, Baidu BIDU said Thursday that it would introduce anti-piracy technology in its document and books product in May. To read the full news, click here.
• Charming Shoppes Inc CHRS reported its Q4 adjusted EPS at ($0.08), versus the consensus of ($0.19). To read the full news, click here.

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