After coming under pressure late in the previous session, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by just 0.25 points.
A lack of major U.S. economic data may keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of a slew of reports on Wednesday.
Reports on weekly jobless claims, durable goods orders, new home sales and personal income and spending are likely to attract attention.
Some trades may also look to get a head start on the Thanksgiving Day holiday, as the markets will be closed on Thursday and open for just a half-day on Friday.
Among individual stocks, shares of Best Buy (BBY) are moving sharply lower in pre-market trading after the electronics retailer reported better than expected third quarter results but provided holiday sales guidance that disappointed investors.
Life sciences company Agilent Technologies (A) may also move to the downside after reporting fiscal fourth quarter results that exceeded expectations but providing guidance below some analysts’ estimates.
Shares of Zoom (ZM) are also seeing significant pre-market weakness after the video conferencing company reported better than expected fiscal third quarter results but forecast slowing sales growth as workers return to their offices.
On the other hand, shares of J.M. Smucker (SJM) may see initial strength after the food producer reported fiscal second quarter results that beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines and raised its full-year forecast.
After turning in a mixed performance for much of the session, stocks came under pressure going into the close of trading on Monday. The Nasdaq slid more firmly into negative territory and the S&P 500 also turned lower, although the narrower Dow managed to cling to a modest gain.
The major averages finished the day mixed for the third consecutive session. While the Dow inched up 17.27 points or 0.1 percent to 35,619.26, the S&P 500 fell 15.02 points or 0.3 percent to 4,682.94 and the Nasdaq tumbled 202.68 points or 1.3 percent to 15,854.76.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq and the S&P 500 both reached new record intraday highs before turning lower as the day progressed.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Tuesday, with the Japanese markets closed for a holiday. China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.2 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slumped by 1.2 percent.
The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.7 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slipping $0.25 to $76.50 a barrel after climbing $0.81 to $76.75 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after plummeting $45.30 to $1,806.30 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are sliding $19.80 to $1,786.50 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 114.96 yen compared to the 114.88 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1250 compared to yesterday’s $1.1237.
Business News
U.S. Stocks May Show A Lack Of Direction In Early Trading
2021-11-23 13:51:23
