Morning Wire -- US Stock-Index Futures Slightly Higher

US index futures are marginally higher this morning following reports from Europe that the continent’s banks took $712 billion from the European Central Bank in the second of the bank’s long-term refinancing operations (LTRO). The amount topped an estimated borrowing of around $630 billion. In Asia, markets finished the month of February on the upside, although Shanghai closed down for the day.

At about 8:15 a.m. ET, Germany’s DAX is up 0.54% at 6,924.70 and France’s CAC 40 is up 0.49%, at 3,471.02. In London, the FTSE 100 is down -0.04%, at 5,925.26.

In Asia, the Hang Seng index closed up 0.52%, at 21,680.10 and the Nikkei index closed up 0.01%, at 9,723.24. The Shanghai exchange closed down -0.95%, at 2,428.49.

Dow futures are up 0.03%, at 13,001.00. The Nasdaq is up 0.07%, at 2,633.75 and the S&P is up 0.06%, at 1,372.20.

In the currency markets, the US dollar is stronger against the euro and the Japanese yen, but weaker against the British pound. The US dollar index is down -0.08% at 78.183.

In commodities, WTI and Brent crude are higher this morning, with WTI up 0.3% at $106.87/barrel and Brent is up 0.77% at $122.49/barrel. Gold is down -0.07% this morning, at $1,787.10/ounce.

Paul Ausick