10 things you need to know before the opening bell

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September 02, 2015

Here is what you need to know.

Chinese stocks saw a wild session. China's Shanghai Composite opened to a loss of more than 4% before seeing a late-morning surge into positive territory ahead of the break. Stocks dipped back into negative territory after trade resumed and regained the flat line amid a late bid. But some end-of-the-day selling dropped the index to a loss of 0.2% at the close. Chinese markets will be closed Thursday and Friday to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Japan's official World War II surrender.

Stock markets around the world trade mixed. Hong Kong's Hang Seng (-1.2%) paced the decline in Asia, and France's CAC (+0.3%) leads the way higher in Europe. S&P 500 futures are higher by 8.00 points at 1,924.00.

Australian GDP disappointed. The Australian economy grew at a 0.2% quarter-over-quarter clip, missing the 0.5% growth that analysts were anticipating. Business Insider Australia reports the growth was the weakest since the Q1 2011. The 2.0% annual growth rate was the slowest since Q3 2013, and the 1.8% nominal growth rate for the 2014-2015 financial year was the weakest since 1961-1962. The Australian dollar is weaker by 0.3% at .7000 and at its lowest levels since 2009.

The IMF is worried Asia's problems could become the world's. International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde said, "What has been demonstrated in the last few weeks is how much Asia is at the core of the global economy, and how much disruption in one market in Asia can actually spill over to the rest of the world." Lagarde went on to say that no two countries had the same fix and that each plan should be tailored to each individual country's needs, according to Reuters.

A new poll suggests a tight Greek election. The coming election in Greece looks as if it will be too close to call. Reuters says a poll published by the Pulse for Action 24 television channel shows former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' Syriza party is polling at 26%. Tsipras' decision to call for a SNAP election could backfire, because the New Democracy party is one point behind at 25%. The Nazi-infused Golden Dawn party is expected to get 6% of the vote, according to the poll.

Puerto Rico Electric is said to have a new debt deal. The Wall Street Journal reports that a verbal agreement has been reached between Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority and its creditors. The deal, which was agreed to just before the midnight deadline, restructures the utility's $9 billion of debt. People familiar with the matter, however, say there is still a risk it falls apart.

Intel introduced its new chip. The chip, dubbed Skylake, was unveiled at the IFA Consumer Electronics show in Berlin. Bloomberg reports, "Skylake will about 2 1/2 times the performance of its predecessor, have 30 times better graphics, and enable systems that go three times as long on one battery charge." The industry is hoping the new chip will help revive PC sales, which have fallen every year since peaking in 2011.

The Beige Book is coming. The Federal Reserve's latest assessment of the US economy will be released at 2 p.m. ET. Traders will be parsing the release closely, looking for any indication the Fed might look to hike its benchmark interest rate later this month. Traders are pricing in a 34% probability a rate hike will occur at the Fed's September meeting.

US economic data is heavy. ADP Employment Change is due out at 8:15 a.m. ET before the latest revisions to productivity and unit labor costs cross the wires at 8:30 a.m. ET and factory orders are released at 10 a.m. ET. US crude-oil inventories will be announced at 10:30 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is down 1 basis point at 2.15%.

Earnings are light. Navistar reports ahead of the opening bell. There are no notable reports coming after the close.