Columbus Day

Good morning. On this Columbus Day where both bond and foreign exchange markets are closed, the North Korean nuclear test is the focus of the U.S. equity markets. In addition, oil prices are back on the rise on reports that OPEC will soon finalize a deal to cut production. San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Janet Yellen will speak about the U.S. economic outlook this afternoon.

We also have some M&A activity on news that PNC Bank (PNC) is buying Mercantile Bankshares (MRBK) and there is a buyout offer for Cablevision (CVC). Other stocks trading higher in the early going include NRPH, AMKR, SHPGY, NTRT, SNMX, SEPR, VSTH, INFY, JBLU, and CSCO. Premarket losers are PWAV, CAKE, AVCI, ESRX, ININ, AKAM, FNSR, and MNST.

Early indications are pointing to a weak start ahead of the third quarter earnings season which officially begins tomorrow. I'm back home and ready to get back to the normal routine. Let's have a great week!