US Stock Futures Edge Higher; Crude Oil Slides

Pre-open movers US stock futures traded higher in early pre-market trade. Data on consumer credit for October will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET. Crude oil futures fell 1.40 percent to trade at $39.41 a barrel. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 18.5 points to 17,837.5, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 3 points to 2,091.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 10.38 points to 4,723.62. A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.70 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index jumping 1.51 percent and German DAX 30 index surging 2.04 percent. French CAC 40 Index climbed 1.78 percent and London's FTSE 100 Index rose 0.53 percent. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.99 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.15 percent, China's Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.34 percent and India's BSE Sensex dropped 0.42 percent. Broker Recommendation Analysts at Jefferies upgraded Abbott Laboratories ABT from Hold to Buy. The price target for Abbott Laboratories has been raised to $55. Abbott Laboratories shares closed at $45.30 on Friday. Breaking news

• Fluor Corporation (NEW) FLR and Stork announced today that Fluor has signed an agreement with UK-based private equity firm Arle Capital Partners to acquire 100 percent of Stork Holding B.V., based in the Netherlands, for an investment of €695 million ($755 million). To read the full news, click here.
• Kite Pharma Inc. KITE today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation status to the Company's lead product candidate, KTE-C19, for the treatment of patients with refractory diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL), primary mediastinal B cell lymphoma (PMBCL), and transformed follicular lymphoma. To read the full news, click here.
• Transocean LTD RIG announced today that the harsh-environment semisubmersible Henry Goodrich was awarded a two year contract with Husky Oil Operations Limited offshore Canada at a dayrate of $275,000. To read the full news, click here.
• General Electric Company GE announced today it has terminated its agreement to sell its Appliances business to Electrolux AB (ADR) ELUXY and will now pursue other options to sell the Appliances business. To read the full news, click here.