U.S. Stocks May Move Back To The Downside In Early Trading

Stocks may move back to the downside in early trading on Tuesday following the strong upward move seen in the previous session. The major index futures are currently pointing to a lower open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by 0.4 percent.

A pullback by Nvidia (NVDA) may generate some selling pressure, as the chipmaker is slumping by 2.7 percent in pre-market trading.

Nvidia held its first-ever GTC Conference on Monday, when the company unveiled its latest line of AI chips, called Blackwell.

Shares of Super Micro Computer (SMCI) have also plunged by 10.6 percent in pre-market trading after the company announced the launch of a proposed underwritten registered public offering of 2 million shares of its common stock.

Caution ahead of the Federal Reserve’s highly anticipated monetary policy announcement on Wednesday may also weigh on Wall Street.

While the Fed is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged, the central bank’s accompanying statement and economic projections could have a significant impact on the outlook for rates.

Recent hotter-than-expected inflation readings have reduced optimism about the likelihood of the Fed’s first rate cut coming in June.

On the U.S. economic front, a report released by the Commerce Department showed a substantial rebound in new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of February.

The Commerce Department said housing starts spiked by 10.7 percent to an annual rate of 1.521 million in February after plunging by 12.3 percent to a revised rate of 1.374 million in January.

Economists had expected housing starts to surge by 7.1 percent to a rate of 1.425 million from the 1.331 million originally reported for the previous month.

The report also said building permits shot up by 1.9 percent to an annual rate of 1.518 million in February after dipping by 0.3 percent to a revised rate of 1.489 million in January.

Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to jump by 1.7 percent to a rate of 1.495 million from the 1.470 million originally reported for the previous month.

After showing a strong move to the upside early in the session, stocks gave back some ground over the course of the trading day on Monday but managed to close mostly higher. With the upward move, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 regained ground after closing lower for three straight sessions.

While the major averages came under pressure going into the close, they managed to end the day in positive territory. The Nasdaq advanced 130.27 points or 0.8 percent at 16,103.45, the S&P 500 climbed 32.33 points or 0.6 percent to 5,149.42 and the Dow rose 75.66 points or 0.2 percent at 38,790.43.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.7 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.7 percent.

The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index is just above the unchanged line and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.2 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are creeping up $0.04 to $82.76 a barrel after jumping $1.68 to $82.72 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after inching up $2.80 to $2,164.30 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are falling $8.60 to $2,155.70 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 150.44 yen compared to the 150.15 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0852 compared to yesterday’s $1.0872.

Business News