US Stock Futures Down Ahead Of Economic Data

Pre-open movers US stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. Data on international trade for February and weekly jobless claims will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Data on factory orders for February will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 34.50 points to 17,580.50, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index futures fell 5.55 points to 2,047.45. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index slipped 14.30 points to 4,298.70. A Peek Into Global Markets European markets were mixed today, with the Spanish Ibex Index rising 0.10%, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.18% and German DAX 30 index falling 0.07%. French CAC 40 Index climbed 0.07% and London's FTSE 100 Index rose 0.09%. In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.46%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 0.77% and China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped 0.41%. Broker Recommendation Analysts at Susquehanna upgraded Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) from Neutral to Positive and raised the price target from $61.00 to $68.00. Dick's Sporting shares rose 0.46% to $57.04 in pre-market trading. Breaking news

• Hercules Offshore (NASDAQ: HERO) announced that it has signed a five-year contract with a subsidiary of Eni S.p.A. for use of the Hercules 260 in West Africa. To read the full news, click here.
• Sequential Brands Group (NASDAQ: SQBG) announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority interest in the Jessica Simpson brand, including the Jessica Simpson Collection master license and other rights. To read the full news, click here.
• SAGE Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SAGE) today announced details of its planned SAGE-547 global Phase 3 development program for the treatment of patients with super-refractory status epilepticus (SRSE). To read the full news, click here.
• Kornit Digital announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 7,100,000 ordinary shares at a price to the public of $10.00 per share. To read the full news, click here.