Futures Pointing To Positive Start To The New Year

After ending last Friday’s trading modestly lower, stocks are likely to move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.4 percent.

The upward momentum on Wall Street comes as traders look to get the New Year started on a positive note following a dismal 2022.

For last year, the Nasdaq plummeted by 33.1 percent, the S&P 500 plunged by 19.4 percent and the Dow tumbled by 8.8 percent.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as some traders remain away from their desks following another long holiday weekend.

Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of some key economic data later this week, including the closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.

Reports on manufacturing and service sector activity may also attract attention in the coming days along with the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting.

Shortly after the start of trading, The Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on construction spending in the month of November. Construction spending is expected to decrease by 0.4 percent in November after falling by 0.3 percent in October.

Stocks showed a significant move to the downside in early trading on Friday but staged a notable recovery attempt going into the close. While the major average climbed well off their lows of the session, they still ended the day in negative territory.

The major averages finished the session modestly lower. The Dow dipped 73.55 points or 0.2 percent to 33,147.25, the Nasdaq edged down 11.61 points or 0.1 percent to 10,466.48 and the S&P 500 slipped 9.78 points or 0.3 percent at 3,839.50.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged by 1.8 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index tumbled by 1.3 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index has jumped by 1.2 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.7 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.5 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are sliding $0.89 to $79.37 a barrel after jumping $1.86 to $80.26 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after inching up $0.20 to $1,826.20 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $18.90 to $1,845.10 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 130.72 yen versus the 130.80 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0562 compared to last Friday’s $1.0667.

Source: Read Full Article