10 things you need to know before the opening bell

Reuters/Thomas Peter

A staff member demonstrates how she puts on the helmet of a mock space suit at the C-Space Project Mars simulation base in the Gobi Desert outside Jinchang, Gansu Province, China.

Here is what you need to know.

1. China's economy was stronger than expected. The Chinese economy grew at a 6.4% year-over-year clip in the first quarter as industrial out jumped 8.5% to record its biggest print since July 2014, data released Wednesday by China's National Bureau of Statistics showed.
2. Netflix beats, but gives weak guidance. The streaming giant earned $0.76 a share on revenue of $4.52 billion as it added 9.6 million paid subscribers - all ahead of estimates - but that was overshadowed by its disappointing outlook for Q2 subs.
3. IBM misses on revenue. The computer-solution provider said revenue slumped 4.7% YoY to $18.2 billion in the first quarter, making for the third straight quarterly drop.
4. Qualcomm and Apple agree to drop all litigation. Shares of the chipmaker Qualcomm spiked 23% on Tuesday after the company reached an agreement with Apple to dismiss all litigation related to their royalty dispute. The companies also agreed to a six-year licensing deal and a chipset-supply agreement.
5. Intel is giving up on its 5G smartphone business. CEO Bob Swan put out a statement on Tuesday saying that there is "no clear path to profitability and positive returns" for Intel's smartphone-modem business.
6. The $1 trillion investing industry is built on a flawed premise. "No one's ever tested its core thesis, which is that starting aggressive and then getting more conservative as you get older leaves you with more money in retirement and less risk when, in fact, it does the opposite," Rob Arnott, the founder and chairman the Pimco subadviser Research Affiliates LLC, told Business Insider.
7. Stock markets around the world were higher. China's Shanghai Composite (+0.29%) led the gains in Asia and France's CAC (+0.2%) was out front in Europe. The S&P 500 was set to open up 0.2% near 2,913.
8. Earnings reporting picks up. Morgan Stanley and PepsiCo report ahead of the opening bell while Alcoa and Las Vegas Sands release their quarterly results after markets close.
9. US economic data flows. Trade data will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET and wholesale inventories will be cross the wires at 10 a.m. ET while the Fed's Beige Book is due out at 2 p.m. ET. The US 10-year yield was up 1.4 basis points at 2.61%.
10. Markets Insider launches private company data pages. Markets Insider is partnering with Crunchbase to bring readers information about thousands of private companies.