Peter Schacknow, Senior Producer, CNBC Breaking News Desk
U.S. investors seem to be taking the potential S&P downgrade of European nations in stride: the news that it might happen did take the steam out of a strong rally Monday, but the major averages did finish the day higher and futures are indicating a higher open so far this morning.
That action leaked during the trading day and became official after the closing bell.
Among the market responses seen this morning to the news: a drop in both oil prices and the value of the euro.
The European debt crisis will undoubtedly get the bulk of Wall Street's attention today, with the calendar lacking any major economic releases, and with Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner arriving in Germany this morning for talks with euro zone officials.
The earnings calendar is also light today, with AutoZone (AZO) among the very few companies of note out with earnings this morning.
Leap Wireless (LEAP) will be a stock to watch in today's trading, following the news of a spectrum exchange deal with Verizon Wireless aimed at beefing up its presence in the Chicago area. The stock first rose in after-hours trading on the news, then slipped more than 5 percent.
Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) has announced a major discovery of shale gas in China, a market which currently has no commercial shale gas production.
Southwest Airlines (LUV) is also on our watch list, following comments by CEO Gary Kelly that the company's labor costs are too high. The comments were made in a letter to employees and are notable because Southwest has historically enjoyed lower labor costs than its larger competitors.
Ford (F) told CNBC that a Wall Street Journal story on possible successors to CEO Alan Mulally is "false". The story says the automaker has begun a broad search for a Mulally replacement because he's expected to leave the company within two years.
Patricia Dunn, the former chair of Hewlett-Packard's (HPQ) board of directors, has passed away at the age of 58. Dunn's tenure was marked by a scandal involving boardroom leaks, which saw her step down from the board in 2006 and a California
court dropping charges against her a year later.
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