Morning Wire -- US Stock-Index Futures Lower

US index futures are lower this morning mostly as a result of the lower than expected level of China’s GDP growth, which rose 8.1% in the first quarter, down sequentially from 8.9% (our coverage here). In Europe, the amount of borrowing by Spanish banks from the European Central Bank has further depressed equities. In Asia, markets finished higher as investors expect that China will implement some measures to boost growth.

At about 8:25 a.m. ET, Germany’s DAX is down -1.02% at 6,674.26 and France’s CAC 40 is down -1.31% at 3,226.97. In London, the FTSE 100 is down 0.52%, at 5,680.77.

In Asia, the Nikkei closed up 1.19% at 9,637.99. The Hang Seng index closed up 1.84% at 20,701.00 and Shanghai closed up 0.35% at 2,359.16.

Dow futures are down -0.50%, at 12,885.00. The Nasdaq is down -0.42%, at 2,727.25 and the S&P is down -0.49%, at 1,379.10.

In the currency markets, the US dollar is stronger against the euro, the British pound, and the Japanese yen. The US dollar index is up 0.28% at 79.508.

In commodities, WTI and Brent crude are lower this morning, with WTI down -0.38% at $103.25/barrel and Brent is down -0.05% at $121.65/barrel. Gold is down -0.50% this morning, at $1,672.20/ounce.

Paul Ausick