U.S. Stocks Likely To Move To The Downside In Early Trading

Following the mixed performance seen in the previous session, stocks are likely to move to the downside in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a lower open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by 139 points.

Weakness in the overseas markets is likely to carry over onto Wall Street amid concerns about the outlook for monetary policy and the global economy.

Worries about the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and the coronavirus outbreak in Shanghai may also weigh on the markets.

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

Reports on consumer and producer price inflation, retail sales and industrial production are likely to attract attention in the coming days.

The data may impact expectations regarding how aggressively the Federal Reserve plans to tighten monetary policy.

The major U.S. stock indexes turned in a mixed performance during trading on Friday after they all ended a volatile session on Thursday in positive territory.

While the Dow saw further upside, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 gave back ground. The Dow rose 137.55 points or 0.4 percent to 34,721.12, but the Nasdaq tumbled 186.30 points or 1.3 percent to 13,711.00 and the S&P 500 fell 11.93 points or 0.3 percent to 4,488.28.

For the week, the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged by 3.9 percent, the S&P 500 slumped by 1.3 percent and the Dow dipped by 0.3 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index slid by 0.6 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index plunged by 2.6 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are turning in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.2 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.6 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.8 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are plummeting $4.33 to $93.93 a barrel after jumping $2.23 to $98.26 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after rising $7.80 to $1,945.60 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are surging $21.20 to $1,966.80 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 125.69 yen versus the 124.34 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0894 compared to last Friday’s $1.0877.

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