Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Fall Ahead of Yellen Speech

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are trading below fair value this morning, signaling a lower open for stocks ahead of a day dominated by Fed speeches. San Francisco Fed President John Williams spoke already this morning, telling an audience in Singapore the U.S. central bank should "stay on track" with its plan to raise interest rates this year. Looking ahead, Fed Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak around midday, while Dallas Fed President Rob Kaplan will give an address later in the afternoon. Also pressuring Dow futures are falling oil prices, with May-dated crude futures down 2.3% at $38.47 per barrel.

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

• Schaeffer's Senior V.P. of Research Todd Salamone examines how VIX and SPY futures speculators could drive stocks higher. 
• The $95 million fraud scandal that rocked this investment bank. 
• Today's momentous drug decision you need to be watching. 
• Plus... the FBI cracks the iPhone, why Sunedison is plunging pre-market, and the latest Yahoo buyout developments. 

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are 56.4 points below fair value. 

5 Things You Need to Know Today

 

1. Global stock markets are mixed as traders anxiously await Janet Yellen's midday speech. 
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 508,126 call contracts traded on Monday, compared to 333,607 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio slid to 0.66, while the 21-day moving average moved up to 0.70.  
3. The FBI has successfully accessed information on the iPhone related to the San Bernardino shootings and will not need Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AAPL) help unlocking the device. The government has not provided any information on how it accessed the phone, and is withdrawing its court order against AAPL. 
4. Sunedison Inc (NYSE:SUNE) is collapsing ahead of the open, falling roughly 36% -- easily putting it on pace for record lows. The early sell-off comes amid reports of an SEC probe, and after SUNE's yieldco unit, TerraForm Global Inc (NASDAQ:GLBL), said the company is at risk of bankruptcy. 
5. Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) has set an April 11 deadline for anyone interested in bidding on its assets. YHOO is edging higher again in electronic trading, as speculation has been heating up recently on companies potentially interested in the tech firm. 

Earnings and Economic Data

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index and the Conference Board's consumer confidence survey will hit the Street today. Conn's (CONN), Dave & Buster's (PLAY), Lennar (LEN), and Sonic (SONC) are among the companies set to release earnings. To see what else is coming up on this week's agenda, click here.