A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Edge Lower Ahead Of Earnings

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. The Empire State manufacturing index for October is schedule for release at 8:30 a.m. ET and data on industrial production for September will be released at 9:15 a.m. ET. Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer is set to speak at 12:00 p.m. ET.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 17 points to 18,042.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures dropped 2 points to 2,125.00. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index declined 8.75 points to 4,795.50.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures gained 0.46 percent to trade at $52.19 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures also rose 0.26 percent to trade at $50.88 a barrel.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today, with the Spanish Ibex Index declining 0.03 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index falling 0.46 percent and German DAX 30 index dropping 0.25 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.60 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.20 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.26 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dropped 0.84 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.74 percent and India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.52 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at BMO Capital downgraded JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) from Outperform to Market Perform.

JPMorgan shares fell 0.31 percent to $67.31 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

• Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) is the fourth big bank to announce better than expected results for the third quarter. On Friday, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) delivered higher than estimated earnings. To read the full news, click here.
• Hasbro Inc (NASDAQ: HAS) EPS and revenue came in above the estimates. To read the full news, click here.
• Apple Inc.(NASDAQ: AAPL) is looking to make big changes in the iPhone and manufacturer a smartphone with a crisp LED display. According to a Bloomberg report, Apple is looking towards its suppliers in Japan to supply millions of OLED screens.
  To read the full news, click here.
• J B Hunt Transport Services Inc (NASDAQ: JBHT) reported weaker-than-expected earnings for the third quarter.