U.S. Stocks May See Further Upside In Early Trading

After ending the previous session mostly higher, stocks may see some further upside in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 169 points.

The markets seem likely to continue to recover from the sell-off seen in the middle of last week, which came amid indications the Federal Reserve plans to begin tapering its asset purchases this year.

Strength in overseas markets may generate positive sentiment on Wall Street, with Asian stocks showing a notable recovery from recent weakness.

Trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to the Fed’s annual Jackson Hole symposium later this week.

Comments from Fed officials at the symposium may shed additional light on the outlook for monetary policy ahead of the next meeting in September.

Reports on new home sales, durable goods orders and personal income and spending are also likely to attract attention in the coming days.

Not long after the start of trading, the National Association of Realtors is scheduled to release its report on existing home sales in the month of July. Existing home sales are expected to jump by 1.3 percent.

Following the lackluster performance seen during trading on Thursday, stocks showed a notable move to the upside during trading on Friday. The major averages all ended the day firmly in positive territory after ending the previous session on opposite sides of the unchanged line.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq outperformed its counterparts, jumping 172.88 points or 1.2 percent to 14,714.66. The Dow also climbed 225.96 points or 0.7 percent to 35,120.08 and the S&P 500 advanced 35.87 points or 0.8 percent to 4,441.67.

Despite the advance on the day, the major averages all moved lower for the week. The Dow slumped by 1.1 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 slid by 0.7 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region regained ground following recent weakness. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.8 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.5 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has advanced by 0.9 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.2 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are spiking $2.04 to $64.18 barrel after tumbling $1.36 to $62.14 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after inching up $0.90 to $1,784 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $13.60 to $1,797.60 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 110.02 yen versus the 109.78 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1729 compared to last Friday’s $1.1698.