Wall Street Aims To Open Mostly Higher

The Congressional testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell might be the highlight on Monday.

New and Existing Home Sales, Durable Goods Orders, and Personal Income and Spending might get special attention this week.

Asian shares finished mostly higher, while European shares are trading broadly higher.

Initial signs from the U.S. Futures Index suggest that Wall Street might open mostly higher.

As of 8.00 am ET, the Dow futures were losing 17.00 points, the S&P 500 futures were gaining 8.25 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures were progressing 105.75 points.

The U.S. major averages finished Friday on opposite sides of the unchanged line. The Nasdaq climbed 99.07 points or 0.8 percent to 13,215.24, but the Dow slid 234.33 points or 0.7 percent to 32,627.97 and the S&P 500 edged down 2.36 points or 0.1 percent to 3,913.10.

On the economic front, the Chicago Fed National Activity Index for February will be published at 8.30 am ET. The consensus is for 0.72, while it was up 0.66 in the prior month.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will participate in a virtual discussion titled “How Can Central Banks Innovate in the Digital Age?” at the Bank for International Settlements Innovation Summit at 9.00 am.

National Association of Realtors’ Existing Home Sales for February will be released at 10.00 am ET. The consensus is for 6.500 million, while it was 6.690 million in January.

Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Thomas Barkin will speak on “A View From the Richmond Fed” before virtual National Association for Business Economics 2021 NABE Policy Conference to Explore Post-COVID Economic Policy Challenges at 10.30 am ET.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly to host “The New Future of Work: Future of Education” virtual event at 1.00 pm ET.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair Randal Quarles will give virtual keynote remarks on LIBOR transition at the SOFR Symposium: The Final Year, an Alternative Reference Rates Committee (ARRC) Webinar at 1.30 pm ET.

Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Monday. Chinese shares rallied on the day. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index climbed 38.78 points, or 1.14 percent, to 3,443.44, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index edged down 0.36 percent to 28,885.34.

Japanese shares tumbled, with automakers succumbing to heavy selling pressure. The Nikkei average ended down 617.90 points, or 2.07 percent, at 29,174.15. The broader Topix index closed 1.09 percent lower at 1,990.18.

Australian markets rebounded from a three-week low. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 44.30 points, or 0.66 percent, to 6,752.50 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 35.40 points, or 0.51 percent, at 6,995.

European shares are trading mostly higher. Among the major indexes in the region, the CAC 40 Index of France is declining 15.35 points or 0.26 percent. The German DAX is adding 46.36 points or 0.32 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 Index is gaining 11.42 points or 0.17 percent.

The Swiss Market Index is adding 12.97 points or 0.12 percent.

The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which is a compilation of 50 blue chip stocks across the euro area, is up 0.044 percent.