U.S. markets are up this morning, following the lead of markets worldwide. The S&P 500 is up 0.47% and the Dow is up 0.46%. There were 304,000 initial claims for unemployment for the week of 2/7, up from 278,000 the prior week.
Asian markets were higher Thursday as strong earnings helped Japanese stocks reach a seven year high. The Hang Seng was up 0.50% while the Nikkei rose 0.40%.
In Europe, markets are moving up today as leaders reached a cease-fire agreement in the Ukraine. The FTSE is up 0.17% and the DAX is up 1.60%.
Energy futures are rising. The price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil is up $1.39 to $50.23 per barrel, and natural gas is up $0.05. Metals prices are up. Gold is up $3.80 and platinum is up $7.00. The Dollar is down versus the Euro and the Yen.
TripAdvisor Inc. (TRIP), Credit Suisse Group AG (CS) and FireEye, Inc. (FEYE), are early risers, while zulily, Inc. (ZU), Baidu, Inc. (BIDU), and Tesla Motors, Inc. (TSLA) are down.
