Hurricane Irma Maintains Category 5 Wind Speeds as Florida Braces for Impact

European stocks drift lower as regional currencies rise in the wake of a slump in the U.S. dollar
By Edward Hardy ,

This is what you need to know before the bell: 

1. European stocks open lower Friday as ongoing weakness in the U.S. dollar keeps regional currencies elevated as investors count the economic impact of this historic Hurricane season on the world's biggest economy.

2. The U.S. National Hurricane Center repeated its warning Friday that Irma is likely to remain a category 5 storm until it makes landfall on the coast of South Florida this weekend with peak wind speeds of up to 185 miles per hour.

3. A magnitude 8.1 earthquake has struck the southern coast of Mexico., killing at least five people. A tsunami warning has been issued for Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama.

4, The dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six global currencies, extended its 1.8% weekly decline Friday, drifting to 91.05 and the lowest level in 2.5 years as investors trimmed rate increase projections from the U.S. Federal Reserve in the wake of the economic damage of Hurricane Harvey and the pending wreckage expected from Hurricanes Irma and Jose, which are currently gathering speed as they barrel towards the South Florida coast.

5. Global oil prices extended gains, as well, with Brent crude, the global benchmark, hitting a 5.5 month high as traders bet that U.S. production will be slower to return to full capacity than first anticipated as a result of Harvey's damage in Texas and Louisiana and the impending impact of Irma.

6. U.S. equity futures are suggesting a Friday pullback on Wall Street, as well, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average priced to fall 50 points, or 0.23%, at the opening bell and a 0.22% slip anticipated for the S&P 500.

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