A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Amid Increasing Russia-Ukraine Tensions

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade after rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he would recognize the independence of two Russian-led breakaway regions of Ukraine and ordered Russian troops to go into eastern Ukraine. Investors are awaiting earnings results from The Home Depot, Inc. HD, Toll Brothers, Inc. TOL and Macy's, Inc. M.

The S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller home price index and FHFA House Price Index for December will be released at 9:00 a.m. ET. The flash Composite Purchasing Managers' Index for February is scheduled for release at 9:45 a.m. ET, while the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index and Richmond manufacturing index will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Raphael Bostic is set to speak at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 171 points to 33,836.00 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 21.25 points to 4,322.25. Futures for the Nasdaq index tumbled 151.25 points to 13,844.75.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures gained 4% to trade at $99.24 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 5.4% to trade at $96.00 a barrel. The total number of active U.S. oil rigs rose by 4 to 520 rigs this week, Baker Hughes Inc reported Friday.

The U.S. has the highest number of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the world, with total infections in the country exceeding 80,145,280 with around 960,150 deaths. India reported a total of at least 42,851,920 confirmed cases, while Brazil confirmed over 28,250,590 cases.

Check out this: Boeing And 3 Other Stocks Bought By Insiders

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index declined 0.5%, while Spain’s IBEX 35 Index fell 0.1% and London’s FTSE 100 fell 0.2%. The French CAC 40 Index fell 0.6%, while German DAX dropped 0.9%. The UK government reported a £2.9 billion surplus in its public finances in January, versus a £2.5 billion deficit a year ago. The Ifo Business Climate indicator for Germany climbed to 98.9 in February from a revised level of 96 in January. The annual inflation rate in Italy increased to 4.8% in January from 3.9% in the earlier month.

Asian markets traded mixed today. Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.71%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dipped 2.69% and China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.96%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 1%, while India’s BSE SENSEX fell 0.7%.

Broker Recommendation

Piper Sandler downgraded Celanese Corporation CE from Neutral to Underweight and lowered the price target from $180 to $140.

Celanese shares fell 1% to $142.80 in pre-market trading.

Check out this: Insiders Sell More Than $92M Of 4 Stocks

Breaking News

• The Williams Companies, Inc. WMB reported upbeat earnings for its fourth quarter.
• Kilroy Realty Corporation KRC reported the resignation of its Chief Financial Officer Michelle Ngo effective February 25, 2022. The company named its Chief Investment Officer Eliott Trencher as interim CFO.
• GXO Logistics, Inc. GXO agreed to buy Clipper Logistics in a deal valued at around £943 million ($1.3 billion).
• The Kraft Heinz Company KHC announced plans to appoint Chief Executive Officer Miguel Patricio as Chair.

Check out other breaking news here