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U.S. stock futures traded mixed ahead of Tuesday’s opening hour as investors await the start of a busy week of corporate earnings and economic data. Investors said they are positioning for the start of the earnings season, as well as data that will help determine whether an upcoming burst of inflation will be short-lived.
On Wall Street on Monday, indices dropped their recent gains as technology, communications and energy supplies weigh on the market.
Bond yields have risen higher after easing most of last week. Investors focus on the economic recovery as well as the risks that higher inflation poses for consumers and companies.
Monday’s setback marked a three-day winning streak for the S&P 500, which ended last week with its third weekly profit.
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“It’s back and forth as the market tries to figure out how strong the economy is going to be and how long it’s going to last,” said Tom Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments.
The S&P 500 dropped 0.81 points to 4,127.99. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 0.2% to 33,745.40. The technically heavy Nasdaq composite lost 0.4%, to 13,850. The S&P 500 and Dow reached a record high every Friday.
U.S. stock futures traded mixed ahead of Tuesday’s opening hour as investors await the start of a busy week of corporate earnings and economic data. Investors said they are positioning for the start of the earnings season, as well as data available
Smaller businesses, which surpassed the broader market this year, also declined. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies gave up 0.4%, to 2,233.78. The index has risen 13.1% so far this year, while the S&P 500, which follows large companies, has risen 9.9%.
Technology stocks were the biggest pull on the market. Apple fell 1.3% and Google’s parent company slipped 1.1%.
The sector was confused as investors shifted money to other industries that could see solid profits as the economy recovered. Rising bond yields have also made the value of technology stocks seem expensive after months of huge gains. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note, which affects interest rates on mortgages and other loans, rose to 1.69% on Tuesday.
While many economists predict a strong economic boom this year, some companies benefited from the reopening of the economy on Monday. Cruise operators Carnival and Royal Caribbean fell 5.3% and 3.1%, respectively.
Nuance Communications rose 15.9% after Microsoft said it would buy the speech technology business for about $ 16 billion.
The earnings season is approaching and the corporate results may point in the direction of future growth as countries gradually emerge from the damage caused by the pandemic.
JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo will report on Wednesday, while Bank of America and Citigroup will report on Thursday.
There have been concerns about recent increases in COVID-19 cases, including in Brazil and the US state of Michigan. Earlier this week, Japan, which is following the world in the explosion of vaccines, called for government-backed measures to curb the recent increase in disease in some areas.
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In Thailand, authorities are warning of a possible explosion in cases after many new infections were found among people visiting clubs and other entertainment venues.
Meanwhile, Asian equities were mostly higher on Tuesday, and hopes grew for a global economic recovery, despite rising coronavirus cases.
According to China, exports rose by almost 31% in March, in line with expectations, but weaker than the 60% growth in the first two months of the year.
The rising trading activity reflects the greater demand in overseas markets, even as some precautions are being taken to counter the increasing number of new infections.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.7% to 29,751.61. South Korea’s Kospi rose 1.1% to 3,169.08. Australia’s S & P / ASX 200 rose less than 0.1% to 6,976.90. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.4% to 28,561.26, while the Shanghai Composite fell 0.5% to 3,395.76.
Robert Carnell, regional head of Research Asia-Pacific at ING, expects trade in the region to be tentative as investors wait for data that will help determine the recovery from pandemic damage.
Apart from the Chinese trade data, “Asian markets, like others, will be hanging on the tents, pending the release of key US inflation figures in March later today,” he said in a report.
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Alibaba’s US listed shares jumped 9.3% after the Chinese conglomerate said it would restructure its Ant Group financial subsidiary to reassure the Chinese government.
In energy trading, the U.S. crude added 31 cents to $ 60.01 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It rose 38 cents to $ 50.70 a barrel on Monday. International standard Brent crude rose 34 cents to $ 63.62 a barrel.
In currency trading, the US dollar rose to 109.66 Japanese yen from 109.40 yen late Monday. The euro slipped from $ 1.1911 to $ 1.1895.
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AP business writers Damian J. Troise and Alex Veiga contributed.