Wake Up Call - Jan 30

Good Morning. At 9:00 a.m. EST, earnings news and the beginning of the two-day Fed meeting seems to have investors enthused, as S&P 500 and NASDAQ indices futures indicate a higher open to start the day.

Asia:
Hang Seng Index +1.11%; Shanghai/Shenzhen 300 -0.97%; NIKKEI 225 +0.11%; BSE SENSEX 30 CLOSED; KRX 100 +0.61%; Ho Chi Minh +2.7%

U.K. & Europe:
DJ STOXX 50 Index +0.3%; FTSE 100 -0.06%; CAC 40 +0.19%; DAX +0.67%; Russian RTS Index -1.24%

KEY HEADLINE NEWS

• Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) exceeded analysts' quarterly forecasts on revenues, and earned $0.84 a share, versus the $0.83 anticipated by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. P&G also raised its guidance for 2007, from $2.97-$3.02 to $2.99-$3.03, as it showed strength across product lines.
• Merck & Co.'s fourth quarter report showed the pharmaceutical maker earned $0.50 before acquisition and restructuring charges, compared to analysts' consensus for $0.51, as compiled by Bloomberg. Thomson Financial showed consensus expectations at $0.50. Merck's results were hurt by weaker Zocor sales.
• As scheduled, Saudi Arabia is cutting production further starting February 1st. This is not new news, but is receiving attention as if it were this morning.
• Microsoft's Vista operating system launched today, and is already being challenged in Europe by the company's rivals, who claim it presents an anti-competitive threat.
• Japanese household spending declined in December, and may keep the Bank of Japan on the sidelines regarding rate change, in our view.
• As we have outlined in the past, Hugo Chavez is seeking to broaden his powers, following in the footsteps of Castro.
• At 10:00 EST, the Conference Board will release its data on consumer confidence. See "The Greek's Week Ahead" for the playbook.

We urge you to read our section within the sidebar, entitled "Headline News", for further important information for traders and investors.

You can receive "Wake Up Call" in your email inbox at the moment we publish it to the site. Just click here and provide us with your email address. We respect your privacy, and never share your information with third parties.

Check back in later this morning, as "Today's Morning Coffee" will outline in greater detail the day's activity in overseas and commodity markets, and provide economic data & analysis and stock specific news. (disclosure)