Dow futures are currently up 85 points to 12,926. Nasdaq 100 futures are up 17.50 to 2,626. The S&P 500 futures are rounding out the pre-market gains, up 11.25 to 1,364.
Jobless claims jumped 8k from last week. The number still remains under the 400k barrier that is a signal for positive labor growth. This shows that the recovery, while taking hold, is rather anemic. If the market was a looking for the catalyst to blow by Dow 13k, this is not it.
Internationally it is all about Greece. A successful auction will give rise to optimism the market desperately needs. Asia also broke their three-day losing streak on the back of the domestic rally yesterday.
Today is also ECB day for Europe. No, it is not a holiday. Rather, they decided to keep their discount rate unchanged at 1.00%. This signals concerns over whether their own recovery is sustainable in the short to long-term. Something to watch depending on how the Greek swaps turn out. A news conference is expected at 8:30am EST.
Commodity prices are once again back in rally mode. Gold prices are up $14.70 to $1698.70 per ounce. Oil is joining the metal in rally mode. Nymex crude futures are up 63 cents to $106.79. Any renewed growth signs will only push the commodity higher until it reaches that tipping point where it slows growth. A continued push above $100 is undoubtedly bad for the anemic recovery globally.
Stocks to watch today include Imperial Sugar Company (NASDAQ:IPSU), Aruba Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARUN), Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ:CLWR), Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMLN), American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO), American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX).
Imperial Sugar Company (NASDAQ:IPSU) is up 21.96% in pre market trading at $6.72. IPSU trades close to 800 thousand shares a day on average. IPSU shares are rallying this morning after the company enters agreement to sell investment in Wholesome Sweeteners. The company has a market cap of 67.33 million.
Aruba Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARUN) is up 4.37% in pre market trading at $22.23. ARUN trades about 2.5 million shares a day on average. ARUN shares have been in a bit downtrend lately, but the stock is still up more than $3 on the year. The company has a market cap of 2.33 billion.
Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ:CLWR) is up 1.38% in pre market trading at $2.21. CLWR trades 13.7 million shares a day on average. CLWR shares are up close to $0.50 from its low of $1.70 this year. The company has a market cap of 985.83 million.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMLN) is down 3.83% in pre market trading at $15.55. AMLN has traded about 42 thousand shares already today and trades 3.5 million shares a day on average. AMLN shares are down some today after the company announced a public offering. Specifics on the number of shares and at what price were not disclosed. The company has a market cap of 2.38 billion.
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE:AEO) is up 2.32% in pre market trading at $15.90. AEO trades 4.4 million shares a day on average. American Eagle Outfitters recently announced its fourth quarter results. Profit for the fourth quarter fell 41%, but its adjusted results met Wall Street estimates. The company has a market cap of 3.01 billion.
American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) is down 2.07% in pre market trading at $28.84. AIG has traded 1.4 million shares already this morning and trades 5.6 million shares a day on average. AIG shares are down on news that the Treasury will sell $6 billion in AIG stock. The company has a market cap of 55.68 billion.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) is up 1.71% in pre market trading at $106.99. NFLX trades 8.4 million shares a day on average. Netflix is in talks with cable companies about implementing their service on cable. The company has a market cap of 5.83 billion.