No Fireworks in Futures Trading

Stocks were mostly higher Monday, rebounding from earlier losses after a shockingly bad report on U.S. manufacturing showed that sector contracting in June for the first time in three years.

The selling, however, was mitigated by optimism for more Federal Reserve stimulus.

In the end, the Dow fell 9 points, the Nasdaq gained 16, and the S&P 500 added 3.

This morning, futures are hugging the flat line, and volume is expected to be light in this holiday-shortened session, and for the rest of the week. Markets close at 1 p.m. ET today, and remain closed tomorrow for the 4th of July holiday.

Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK) will plead guilty and pay a record $3 billion to settle criminal and civil charges that it illegally promoted two drugs, and failed to report key safety data on another.  The government calls the fines unprecedented.

Glaxo misbranded Paxil, an antidepressant, for treatment of children, even though the FDA never approved it for kids under 18 years old.  It also promoted Wellbutrin for weight-loss and substance-abuse treatment, when the FDA only green lighted it for depression.

Glaxo also never reported data from studies involving its blockbuster diabetes drug Avandia.

About 8.7 million U.S. workers are on Federal Disability as of June, according to the Social Security Administration.  The data do not include workers’ spouses and kids.  Add them into the mix, and nearly 11 million Americans are receiving federal disability payments.

Another way to look at the data: one worker takes disability for every 16 people working. The numbers have more than doubled over the past two decades, and are up dramatically since President Obama took office in 2009.

Barclays’ (NYSE:BCS) CEO Bob Diamond has quit, becoming the latest scalp of a financial markets scandal that has also cost the job of Barclays’ chairman, Marcus Agius.

Barclays' management has come under fire since the bank was fined $453 million last week by U.S. and British regulators for submitting false reports on interbank borrowing rates between 2005 and 2009.

More fines related to LIBOR are expected to hit other banks. Diamond says he still intends to face lawmakers tomorrow to give them the bank’s explanation.