Options Trading News

Stock futures are hovering this morning, though sentiment is brightening as European indexes fight back from earlier losses.

S&P 500 futures are down slightly after closing in the middle of their trading range yesterday. The British FTSE 100 and the German DAX modestly, while France's CAC 40 is up by more than half a percentage point. All of them had been negative earlier but turned green after a survey of Eurozone economic sentiment came in stronger than expected.

Most Asian markets fell overnight after American equities closed in the red yesterday. The S&P 500 had rallied strongly last week and has been paused at a resistance level from October as investors await earnings season, which begins this afternoon with Alcoa's quarterly report.

Foreign-exchange trading and commodities are painting a modestly bullish picture. While the euro is little-changed, the Australian and Canadian dollars are higher against the greenback. Because of their raw-material exports, both tend to follow expectations about the global economy. The big negative in the currency market is strength in the Japanese yen.

Oil and copper, which are leveraged to the global economy as well, have also been pushing higher throughout the pre-market session and are now both positive. Precious metals are modestly higher as gold and silver attempt to find support after recent losses. Most agricultural foodstuffs are lower.

In company-specific news, Yum Brands is indicated to open lower after the fast-food giant reported weak sales in China. Agribusiness giant Monsanto is higher about 4 percent after announcing strong earnings and raising its guidance.