Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Slump; Gold Catches Safe-Haven Bid

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are lower this morning, erasing early gains, as traders react to Friday's deadly terrorist attacks in Paris. Oil futures are struggling to hold their earlier advance, with the most active contract just fractionally higher after rising more than 2% in early trade -- but gold is capitalizing on its safe-haven status with a 1% rise this morning. Meanwhile, travel and leisure stocks have suffered heavy losses around the globe, even as major M&A news breaks for a pair of hoteliers.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• How Yelp Inc (NYSE:YELP) bucked its long-term bearish trend.
• While brick-and-mortar retailers are dominating the headlines, this Chinese e-tailer's collapse shouldn't be ignored.
• One solar stock's sharp bounce brought out bulls in droves.

And now, on to the numbers…

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 9 points below fair value. 

 5 Things You Need to Know Today

 

1. Global travel stocks are struggling following Friday's attacks in Paris, even as commodities rally.
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 868,792 call contracts traded on Friday, compared to 852,00 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio jumped to 0.98 -- its highest mark since Aug. 21 -- while the 21-day moving average stayed at 0.69. 
3. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc (NYSE:HOT) has been surrounded by M&A buzz for months, and a deal has finally come to fruition. Marriott International Inc (NASDAQ:MAR) will buy the company in a cash-and-stock deal valued at over $12 billion, creating the largest hotel chain in the world. However, HOT is 6% lower in electronic trading, as the offer of $72.08 per share stands at a discount to Friday's close at $74.99. Meanwhile, MAR is off nearly 2%, succumbing to a worldwide slump for travel and leisure names. 
4. After selling its Australian commercial lending business earlier in the month, General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) now has two bidders for its Japanese commercial lending business as well, according to The Wall Street Journal. GE is set to open 0.7% lower. 
5. Coming off a painful week for retail stocks, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) is waking up to news that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.A) has cut its stake in the chain by 7%. Buffett told CNBC he sold the shares to help finance Berkshire's purchase of Precision Castparts Corp. (NYSE:PCP). The move comes just ahead of WMT's earnings release on Tuesday. 

Earnings and Economic Data

 

The week begins with the Empire State manufacturing index. Urban Outfitters (URBN) and JD.com (JD) will get the earnings ball rolling. To see what else is coming up on this week's schedule, click here.