US Stock Futures Flat; Japan Trade Deficit Widens

Pre-open movers US stock futures were mostly flat in early pre-market trade. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1 point to 15,037.00, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 0.10 points to 1,651.20. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index gained 2.50 points to 3,072.25. A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index dropping 0.84%, London's FTSE 100 index dropping 0.19% and STOXX Europe 600 Index declining 0.31%. German DAX 30 index fell 0.14% and French CAC 40 Index tumbled 0.64%. Asian markets ended mixed today. Japan's trade deficit widened to ¥1.024 trillion in July. The country's exports climbed 12.2% y/y, while imports surged 19.6%. China's Shanghai Composite surged 0.83%, while Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.79%. Australia's ASX/S&P500 gained 0.04% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.24% and India's Sensex tumbled 1.56%. Broker Recommendation Analysts at Sterne Agee upgraded Kaiser Aluminum (NASDAQ: KALU) from “neutral” to “buy.” The target price for Kaiser Aluminum is set to $80. Kaiser Aluminum's shares closed at $67.32 on Friday. Breaking news

• Independent Bank (NASDAQ: IBCP) announced today that it has commenced an underwritten public offering of $86 million of its common stock. To read the full news, click here.
• McGraw Hill Financial (NYSE: MHFI) today announced it has added to its investment in CRISIL Limited, a global analytical company and India's leader in credit ratings and research, increasing its stake to 67.8% from 52.8%. To read the full news, click here.
• Zillow (NASDAQ: Z) today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire StreetEasy®, the leading real estate website in New York City, for $50 million in cash. To read the full news, click here.
• Edwards Group (NASDAQ: EVAC) and Atlas Copco Group, the Sweden-based provider of industrial productivity solutions, today announced that the companies have entered into a definitive merger agreement in a transaction valued at up to approximately $1.6 billion, including the assumption of debt. To read the full news, click here.