Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures appear ready to bounce back, after the index closed yesterday's session down triple digits. A flurry of upbeat earnings reports are helping the index, withWal-Mart (WMT) and Cisco Systems (CSCO) stocks pointed higher after earnings. All eyes will be on Washington, D.C., later, as the House of Representatives is poised to vote on their tax-overhaul bill. Elsewhere, weekly jobless claims rose more than expected to a six-week high, and U.S. import prices rose by 0.2% in October, lower than the 0.4% estimate.
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The Philadelphia Fed business outlook survey and industrial production data will be released today. Fed Governor Lael Brainard, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, and Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan will take the mic. Applied Materials (AMAT), Best Buy (BBY), Gap (GPS), Helmerich & Payne (HP), J M Smucker (SJM), Ross Stores (ROST), Splunk (SPLK), and Viacom (VIAB)report earnings.
Asian markets finished mostly higher, despite Wednesday's sharp selloff on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei tacked on 1.5% -- snapping its six-day losing streak -- as SoftBank rallied on news of a possible $25 billion investment in Saudi Arabia. Elsewhere, a positive earnings reaction for Tencent helped lift Hong Kong's Hang Seng 0.6%, while South Korea's Kospi added 0.7%. China's Shanghai Composite lagged its regional peers, though, giving back 0.08%.
It's a positive session in Europe at midday, as traders respond to a fresh batch of corporate earnings reports. While a post-earnings surge for French conglomerate Bouygues is helping to boost the construction sector, bank stocks are getting a boost from the earnings reaction for U.K. investment name 3i Group. Automakers are rallying, as well, after data showed new car registrations in the eurozone swung higher last month. At last check, the French CAC 40 was up 0.7%, the German DAX was flirting with a 0.6% lead, and London's FTSE 100 was sitting 0.03% above breakeven after October retail sales came in above expectations.