Dow Jones Industrial Average Futures Higher Amid Data Dump

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures are signaling a higher start to the day, as stocks look to pare yesterday's oil-induced losses. Traders are watching today's economic data -- the last big batch ahead of next week's Fed meeting -- and while weekly jobless claims came in slightly lower than anticipated, August retail sales were weaker than expected, and the producer price index (PPI) was flat, missing expectations for a 0.1% rise.

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

• The biotech that plummeted after being halted for volatility.
• The casino stock option buyers are betting is a winner.
• One Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) supplier that has more than doubled this year.
• Plus... Japan stocks slide, Aerie Pharmaceuticals blasts off, and Apple's iPhone update.

Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) are about 41 points above fair value.

5 Things You Need to Know Today
 

1. Asian stocks finished the day mixed, with Japan dropping ahead of the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) next policy meeting, while Hong Kong rose on gambling stocks.
2. The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) saw 949,120 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to 519,484 put contracts. The resultant single-session equity put/call ratio fell to 0.55, while the 21-day moving average fell to 0.65.
3. Aerie Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ:AERI) is up a whopping 72.5% in electronic trading -- and could open at an all-time high -- after the biotech reported positive trial data for its drug Roclatan, which lowers fluid pressure in the eye. The news was met with no fewer than four price-target hikes, including a jump to $52 from $45 by Needham, and comes just a day after Raymond James said the firm "could emerge as a major player in the ophthalmology space."
4. Tech giant Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is set to open up 1.2% -- extending its recent run higher -- after the company said initial quantities of the iPhone 7 Plus have already sold out, and will be unavailable for walk-in purchases. 
5. Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is sitting 0.3% higher before the bell, paring some of yesterday's losses that followed the automaker's announcement that increased costs will weigh on its 2017 results. F is also attempting to shrug off a price-target cut to $15 from $16 at J.P. Morgan Securities.

Earnings and Economic Data

Today will be busy, industrial production and business inventories still on the docket. Oracle Corporation (ORCL) headlines the earnings calendar. To see what else is coming up on this week's schedule, click here.