Futures Pointing To Extended Pullback On Wall Street

Stocks are likely to move to the downside in early trading on Monday, extending the pullback 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 0.6 percent.

Concerns about the outlook for interest rates may continue to weigh on Wall Street following last week’s stronger than expected jobs data.

Trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, with a lack of major U.S. economic data likely to keep some traders on the sidelines.

The economic calendar remains relatively light throughout the week, although traders are likely to keep an eye on remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Tuesday.

After last week’s interest rate increase, traders are likely to look to Powell’s comments for additional clues about the outlook for further rate hikes.

Stocks recovered from initial weakness but showed a significant move back to the downside over the course of the trading session on Friday. With the pullback on the day, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 gave back ground after moving sharply higher for three straight sessions.

After ending Thursday’s trading at nearly five-month closing high, the Nasdaq tumbled 193.86 points or 1.6 percent to 12,006.95. The S&P 500 also slumped 43.28 points or 1.0 percent to 4,136.48, pulling back off its best closing level in over five months.

The narrower Dow showed a more modest decrease on the day, with the blue chip index falling 127.93 points or 0.4 percent to 33,926.01.

Despite the pullback, the Nasdaq surged 3.3 percent for the week and the S&P 500 jumped by 1.6 percent. Meanwhile, the Dow edged down by 0.2 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower on Monday, although Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index bucked the downtrend and climbed by 0.7 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite Index slid by 0.8 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi tumbled by 1.7 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has dove by 1.3 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.9 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.7 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.75 to $74.14 a barrel after plunging $2.49 to $73.39 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after plummeting $54.20 to $1,876.60 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are rising $7.80 to $1,884.40 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 132.26 yen versus the 131.19 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0773 compared to last Friday’s $1.0795.

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