A Peek Into The Markets: US Stock Futures Tumble Following Airstrike In Baghdad

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. The U.S. launched three rockets targeting the convoy of Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force, a spokesperson for Iraq's state-backed militia consortium Popular Mobilisation Forces told Reuters. A key Iranian military leader was among the seven people killed in a U.S. airstrike at the Baghdad International Airport. Data on motor vehicle sales for December will be released today. The ISM manufacturing index for December and data on construction spending for November will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond President Thomas Barkin is set to speak at 11:05 a.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard will speak at 1:15 p.m. ET. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans is set to speak at 1:15 p.m. ET, while Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Robert Kaplan will speak at 3:30 p.m. ET. The Federal Open Market Committee will issue minutes of its latest meeting at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 374 points to 28,467 while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures traded fell 46.5 points to 3,212.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 142.75 points to 8,749.00.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 4.4% to trade at $69.15 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures rose 4.2% to trade at $63.74 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on natural gas stocks in underground storage is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET, while the EIA’s weekly report on petroleum inventories will be released at 11:00 a.m. ET. The Baker Hughes North American rig count report for the latest week is schedule for release at 1:00 p.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 1.1%, STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 1% and German DAX 30 index dropping 1.9%. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.5%, while French CAC 40 Index fell 0.7%.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.76%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.32%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.05% and India’s BSE Sensex rose 0.78%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at Bank of America upgraded L Brands, Inc. LB from Neutral to Buy.

L Brands shares rose 2% to $17.84 in pre-market trading.

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