US Futures Lead to Higher Market Open

According to the Wall Street Journal, “U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher open for Wall Street on Wednesday, as investors appeared set to track a rise by European equities while shrugging off a disappointing start to earnings season by Alcoa.” Two hours before trading started, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had already risen by 126 points to 11456, futures on the S&P 500 swelled 12.2 to 1201.8 and NASDAQ 100 futures rose 24 points to 2312.5.

‘Cautiously Optimistic’ Over Eurozone Debt Issues

While changes in futures do not always correlate to early market moves, the news led to what the Wall Street Journal described as a “cautiously optimistic” tone that Michael Hewson, market analyst at CMC Markets in London, said was owed “to ideas European officials are moving to rein in the region’s debt problems has provided a lift as European equities turned higher.” European markets stared off sluggish only to gain ground and trade marginally higher toward the afternoon as mining companies, technology stocks and auto makers took the lead in the EU markets.

Optimism Not Enough for Alcoa While PEP and HST Open Strong

Alcoa (AA) dropped significantly after open on news that its third quarter profit estimates were merely 15 cents a share, down form the forecasted 22 cents a share. It was down 4.71% at 10:30 am EST. Pepsico (PEP) and Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. (HST) opened strong. HST opened at $11.02 a share to rise to $11.70 a share by 10:30 am EST while PEP opened at $62.37, up from its close yesterday of $60.95 a share.