Stocks that are expected to trade actively in the U.S. market on Thursday are: Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM), Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS) and Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ:SYMC).

Market Level

USA- DJIA 15738.79 (-1.19%), S&P 500 1,774.20 (-1.20%), NASDAQ 4,051.43 (-1.14%)

Europe– FTSE 100 6,519.21 (-0.38%), DAX 9,303.70 (-0.36%), CAC 40 4,138.48 (-0.47%)

Asia– NIKKEI 15007.06 (-2.45%), HANG SENG 22035.42 (-0.48%), KOSPI 1,941.15 (1.26%) SHANGHAI 2,033.08 (-0.82%)

Commodities – Gold 1,254.60 (-0.60%), Silver 19.36 (-1.01%) OIL 97.96 (0.62%) CORN 428.75 (0.29%) WHEAT 554.00 (0.45%)

Currency- USD/JPY 102.35 (0.07%), GBP/USD 1.6452 (-0.59%), EUR/USD 1.3591 (-0.53%)

10 year Treasury bond: 2.689 (0.007).

Economic & Market Update

U.S. markets down – shares on the U.S. indexes tumbled on Wednesday following the decision by Federal Reserve to curtail its monthly bond purchases by an additional $10 billion a month. Major benchmark indexes hit their new 2014 closing lows on Wednesday.

European markets down – in morning trading on Thursday, European equities traded lower owing to disappointing earnings, the U.S. Federal Reserve announcement and a continuing sell-off in emerging markets. The pan-European index looks on track to register a decline of around 2% this month, which would be its first monthly loss since August.

Asian markets down – Asian equities were deep in the red on Thursday following signs of a contraction in China’s economy, and the announcement by Federal Reserve to curtail its stimulus program further. Japan’s benchmark index closed marginally above the 15,000 level after hitting a two-and-a-half month low earlier in the session. Mainland shares were down as investors continue to book profits ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays.

Stocks to watch

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)

After the market close on Wednesday, Facebook posted a profit of $523 million, or 20 cents a share, from $64 million, or 3 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue for the quarter came in at $2.59 billion from $1.59 billion. In after-hours trading, Facebook shares gained almost 10%.

Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)

In after-hours trading, Google shares gained 1.6% following the report that the company is closing in on a deal to sell its Motorola handset business to Chinese Lenovo Group for about $3 billion. After the market close today, Google is expected to report fourth quarter earnings of $12.26 per share on revenue of $16.75 billion.

QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM)

For the fiscal first-quarter, Qualcomm posted a profit of $1.88 billion, or $1.09 a share, compared to $1.91 billion, or $1.09 a share, last year. Revenue for the quarter came in at $6.62 billion against $6.02 billion last year. In extended trading session, shares of the company gained 3%.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS)

For the fourth-quarter, profit of Las Vegas Sands Corp. increased to $577.5 million, or 70 cents a share, from $434.8 million, or 53 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue for the company increased 18.8% to $3.66 billion. In after-hours trading, shares of the company lost more than 3%.

Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ:SYMC)

For fiscal third-quarter, Symantec Corp. posted a profit of $283 million, or 40 cents a share, from $212 million, or 30 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue for the quarter came in at $1.71 billion against $1.79 billion last year. In after-hours trading, shares of the company were mostly flat.