Morning Briefing: 10 Things You Should Know
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- U.S. stock futures were pointing slightly lower Wednesday, signaling a weaker start on Wall Street following declines in Europe and Asia.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 2.1% to close at 10,486.99, a day after the Bank of Japan said it would undertake open-ended asset purchases starting in 2014. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.1%.
The economic calendar in the U.S. Wednesday includes the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Mortgage Market Index at 7 a.m. EST, and the FHFA House Price Index at 9 a.m.
U.S. stocks on Tuesday ended higher as investors digested a handful of earnings reports and economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 62 points, or 0.46%, to finish at 13,712. The blue-chip index remained on pace for its biggest monthly gain since October 2011. The S&P 500 climbed 7 points, or 0.44%, to 1493. The Nasdaq increased 8 points, or 0.27%, to 3143.
The U.S. House of representatives votes Wednesday on a motion to increase the nation's $16.4 trillion borrowing limit for three months. President Obama, the White House said, would sign the bill if it gets the OK from Congress.
Google (GOOG), the search giant, posted fourth-quarter earnings growth of 12%. Google earned $10.65 a share in the quarter on $11.3 billion in revenue, excluding traffic acquisition costs. With TAC, Google generated $14.42 billion in sales, up 36% from the same period last year.
IBM (IBM) topped Wall Street's fourth-quarter earnings estimates, boosted by strength in its software business.
Apple (AAPL), the iPod, iPhone and iPad maker, is expected by analysts Wednesday to post quarterly earnings of $13.43 a share on revenue of close to $55 billion.
McDonald's (MCD), the world's biggest fast-food chain, is expected by analysts Wednesday to report fourth-quarter earnings of $1.33 a share on revenue of $6.89 billion.
Texas Instruments (TXN) beat analysts' fourth-quarter estimates on Tuesday, but warned of weak demand.
Shares of Dell (DELL) jumped 2.2% Tuesday following reports that Microsoft (MSFT) could invest as $3 billion in an eventual takeover of the struggling PC maker.
-- Written by Joseph Woelfel
>To contact the writer of this article, click here: Joseph Woelfel >To submit a news tip, send an email to: tips@thestreet.com.
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