Futures Pointing To Initial Strength On Wall Street

After turning lower over the course of the previous session, stocks may move back to the upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 82 points.

Concerns about slowing economic growth contributed to the downturn on Monday, although traders remain generally optimistic about the outlook for the U.S. economy.

The Federal Reserve’s repeated promises that it will not begin scaling back stimulus until “substantial further progress” has been made toward its policy goals has also helped prop up the markets.

Last week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is a “ways away” from altering policy, noting there is still “some ground to cover on the labor market side.”

Positive sentiment may also be generated in reaction to data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing 70 percent of U.S. adults have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

The increase in vaccinations comes amid the rapid spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus, which has led to renewed lockdowns in some parts of the world.

CDC recently revised its guidance to recommend that people vaccinated for the coronavirus resume wearing masks indoors in areas of substantial or high transmission, particularly the South and West.

Shortly after the start of trading, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on new orders for manufactured goods in the month of June. Factory orders are expected to increase by 1.0 percent in June after jumping by 1.7 percent in May.

Stocks moved to the upside early in the trading day on Monday but gave back ground over the course of the session. The major averages pulled back well off their early highs, with the Dow and the S&P 500 ending the day in negative territory.

After reaching a record intraday high in early trading, the Dow fell 97.31 points or 0.3 percent to 34,838.16. The S&P 500 also dipped 8.10 points or 0.2 percent to 4,387.16, while the Nasdaq inched up 8.39 points or 0.1 percent to 14,681.07.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index and China’s Shanghai Composite Index both fell by 0.5 percent, although South Korea’s Kospi bucked the downtrend and rose by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have turned mixed on the day. While the German DAX Index has edged down by 0.1 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.8 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slumping $1.18 to $70.08 a barrel after plunging $2.69 to $71.26 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after rising $5 to $1,822.20 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are sliding $12.20 to $1,810.60 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 109.09 yen compared to the 109.31 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1882 compared to yesterday’s $1.1870.