A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Earnings

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade, ahead of earnings reports from Hasbro, Inc. HAS, Phillips 66 PSX, Exelon Corporation EXC and The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company GT. San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly is set to speak in San Francisco, CA at 1:15 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 79 points to 25,052.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures fell 9.5 points to 2,694.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 33.75 points to 6,872.00.

Oil prices traded mixed as Brent crude futures rose 0.39 percent to trade at $61.87 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures fell 0.17 percent to trade at $52.55 a barrel. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is will be released at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were mostly higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.32 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index gaining 0.07 percent and German DAX 30 index gained 0.02 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading higher by 0.11 percent, while French CAC 40 Index gained 0.22 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 2.01 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.16 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.3 percent and India’s BSE Sensex slipped 1.15 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Deutsche Bank upgraded Willis Towers Watson PLC WLTW from Sell to Hold.

Willis Towers Watson shares rose 0.1 percent to $162.95 in pre-market trading.

Breaking News

Expedia Group Inc EXPE reported better-than-expected earnings for its fourth quarter.

Mattel, Inc. MAT reported stronger-than-expected results for its fourth quarter on Thursday.

Carbonite Inc CARB reported upbeat earnings for its fourth quarter, while sales missed estimates. The company announced plans to acquire Webroot for $618.5 million.

Skechers USA Inc SKX reported upbeat earnings for its fourth quarter on Thursday.