Apple Boosts Nasdaq Futures; Oil, Gas Jump

FOX Business: The Power to Prosper

The tech-heavy Nasdaq was poised to outpace the other major markets as shares of heavyweight Apple rallied. Meanwhile, oil and gasoline prices climbed on supply worries.

Today's Markets

As of 8:05 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 8 points to 13164, S&P 500 futures climbed 3.8 points to 1414 and Nasdaq 100 futures gained 15.8 points to 2791.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares zipped more than 2% higher in pre-market action after it beat South Korean Samsung competitor in a closely-watched patent lawsuit. Samsung, which has said it will appeal the results, was ordered to pay America's biggest publicly traded company by market capitalization $1.05 billion.

Given Apple's $621 billion market value, movements in its stock price often have an outsized affect on the broader markets.

Elsewhere, a key measure of business confidence in Germany sunk for the fourth month in a row in August to its lowest level since March 2010. The report from the Ifo Institute comes as yet another sign that even Europe's biggest economy isn't immune to flagging global demand and the eurozone's debt crisis.

"Today's release confirmed our view that weaker global demand will soon be felt in Germany," Barclays analyst Thomas Harjes wrote in a note to clients.

Energy prices rose as Tropical Storm Isaac threatened offshore oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and a fire struck at a refinery in Venezuela. So far 24.2% of U.S. offshore production has been shutdown, according to a report by Reuters, citing the U.S. Energy Department. Big producers such as BP (NYSE:BP), Chevron (NYSE:CVX), Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE:ADC) and Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS) have all been forced to take measures in light of the big storm system.

The benchmark crude contract traded in New York  climbed 83 cents, or 0.86%, to $96.99 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline surged 3.2% to $3.173 a gallon.

In metals, gold fell $1.80, or 0.11%, to $1,671 a troy ounce.

The economic calendar is light on the day, with a regional Federal Reserve manufacturing survey on tap. However, it is set to be a busy week with several important reports and a speech by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke on the schedule.

Foreign Markets

The Euro Stoxx 50 rose 0.28% to 2441 and the German DAX gained 0.25% to 6988. The markets in the U.K. were closed.

In Asia, the Japanese Nikkei 225 tilted higher by 0.16% to 9085 and the Chinese Hang Seng fell 0.41% to 19799.