News Summary for May 24, 2011

This is your morning news summary from Benzinga for Tuesday, May 24th, 2011, covering overnight and pre-market news affecting today's trading session. Stock index futures are pointing to a slightly higher open today after a negative session to the start of the week. On Monday, euro zone debt concerns - especially those relating to Greek debt - weighed on the markets, causing a slide of over 1%. Today, however, global equities buyers have stepped back up to the plate, as European markets posted solid gains. S&P futures are over three points higher, Nasdaq futures over 4 points higher, and Dow Jones futures over 30 points higher from yesterday's close. Commodities are also higher, with a lower greenback. On the economic calendar today, U.S. new home sales for April will be released today at 10am. For April, new home sales are expected to be reported at 300,000 for their seasonally adjusted annual rate. In March, new home sales rebounded over 11% to an annual rate of 300,000. Earnings season is winding down to a close. However, Applied Materials AMAT and Compuware CPWR are still due to report earnings this week. Cracker Barrel reported earnings today, announcing a fall in comparable-store sales. Overseas, Asian stocks traded in a tight range with Nikkei average moving slightly higher after making a recent five-week low. Sony Corporation was among the bellwether leaders in overseas trading, along with the construction machinery sector. In precious metals trading, gold rose to a two-week high to $1,521.80 per troy ounce, while a weakened dollar also provided some support. In corporate news, AIG will price a share sale for its Treasury sell-down, a major step in the exit of the Treasury's 92% stake in the company. In merger and acquisition news, Valeant will buy Sanitas for $443 million, saying that the acquisition will boost its eastern European expansion plans. Volcano Grimsvotn continues to spew ash after an eruption in Iceland. Aviation stocks could continue to see weakeness after many flights were cancelled in the wake of the disaster.