10 Things You Need To Know Before The Opening Bell

Mamta Badkar |

Zunino Celotto/Getty Images

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

• Asian markets were lower in overnight trading with the Nikkei plunging 2.09 percent. Europe is selling off as hopes of coordinated monetary easing have started to wane. U.S. futures are lower.

• The big news out of Europe this morning is that Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy has said he in talks with EU leaders about how best to address the trouble in Spain's banking sector. Spain is reportedly going to ask for aid this weekend. 

• Oil is looking at its longest losing streak in 13 years on chatter than U.S. and China the biggest global consumers of crude oil are set to slow and reduce fuel demand. 

• Olympus has announced that it will cut 2,700 jobs by March 2014 and restructure its global manufacturing operations as it tries to emerge from its $1.5 billion accounting scandal.

• Japan's Q1 GDP grew a revised 1.2 percent quarter-over-quarter and 4.7 percent year-over-year. THe upward revision was attributed to gains in private demand and a pick up in the country's auto market.

• International trade data for April will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by wholesale trade data for April at 10 a.m. ET. Consensus is for the international trade gap to shrink to $49.3 billion and a 0.5 percent month-over-month increase in inventories. 

• UK PPI surprisingly fell 0.2 percent in May from the previous month. The decline was led by a drop in the price of petroleum products. 

• French business confidence dropped to 93 in May, from a revised 94 in April. Sentiment among factory executives fell as recessions across Europe crimped demand.

• The Federal Housing Administration is struggling to cope with delinquent home mortgages and plans to speed up sales of loans to investors which could offset foreclosures for thousands of homeowners, according to the Wall Street Journal. The FHA is expected to announce the bulk sale program today. 

• Chesapeake Energy is having its annual shareholders meeting today with a vote on executive compensation. Investors are expected to demand a board shake-up after board's oversight of Chief executive Aubrey McClendon.