10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell

Eric Platt

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Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images

Good morning. Here's what you need to know.

• Overnight trading in Asia sent markets higher, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng gaining 1.7 percent. European shares are modestly up and U.S. futures point to a positive open.

• The FBI is readying cases against nearly 120 suspects as it expands its dive into insider trading, the Wall Street Journal's Jenny Strasburg and Reed Albergotti report. The operation, nicknamed "Perfect Hedge," is the first time the FBI has quantified the size of its ongoing inquiry. The news follows a number of high profile convictions for the agency.  

• Consumer confidence in the eurozone increased greater than expected in February, the European Commission says. The key index advanced from 93.4 to 94.4, month-on-month. 

• Japanese retail sales grew at a modestly faster clip than economist forecasts in January, data from Japan's Trade Ministry shows. Sales rose 1.9 percent from year ago levels, or 4.1 percent sequentially, following a 2.5 percent gain in December. Economists were looking for a 0.1 percent contraction.

• South Africa's economy expanded by 3.2 percent in the fourth quarter, data from Statistics South Africa shows. That's 10 basis points higher than economists forecast and a rapid acceleration from the 1.7 percent annualized rate logged in the prior three months. 

• U.S. economic announcements begin at 8:30 a.m. with the release of the January Durable Goods Orders number. Economists predict orders fell 1.0 percent in January. However, when excluding the volatile transportation sector, they predict it will remain flat sequentially. 

• Standard & Poor's Case Shiller data on the U.S. housing market will be announced at 9:00 a.m. EST. The index covering the twenty largest metropolitan cities is expected to decline 0.4 percent month-on-month in December. 

• General Motors is in talks with Peugeot Citroen to purchase a small stake in the French automaker, Reuters reports. Details of the deal put the stake between five and seven percent, which at Peugeot's $4.8 billion market cap would value a stake between $240 and $340 million. Surprised that high gas prices haven't killed the auto market? 

• Quarterly results will be announced by El Paso Energy and DreamWorks Animation, along with more than a dozen other firms today.  Analysts polled by Bloomberg forecast earnings per share of $0.30 and $0.33 at El Paso and DreamWorks, respectively. 

• HSBC's London unit is being investigated into illegal money transfers, including some to Iran, Reuters reports. The bank's New York operations are also under inquiry by the Manhattan district attorney, Federal Reserve and Justice Department, among others. HSBC disclosed the probe in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.