Following last week's significant gains, stocks may exhibit a lack of clear direction in early Monday trading. The major index futures indicate a flat opening, with S&P 500 futures up by a marginal 0.1 percent.
Investors might hesitate to make significant moves due to recent volatility, which saw the markets plummet earlier this month before rebounding impressively over the past several sessions.
The U.S. economic calendar is relatively quiet at the start of the week following the previous week's deluge of data. However, key events later in the week are likely to draw attention.
The minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting may provide additional insights into the outlook for interest rates, complemented by comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other officials at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium.
According to CME Group's FedWatch Tool, there is a 73.5 percent probability of a quarter-point rate cut next month and a 26.5 percent chance of a half-point rate cut.
In corporate news, shares of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are trading notably higher in the pre-market after the chipmaker announced an agreement to acquire server maker ZT Systems in a cash and stock deal valued at $4.9 billion.
Shortly after trading begins, the Conference Board is set to release its report on leading economic indicators for July. The leading economic index is expected to decrease by 0.3 percent in July after declining by 0.2 percent in June.
On Friday, after a lackluster start, stocks moved mostly higher throughout the trading day. The major averages settled firmly in positive territory after fluctuating around the unchanged line in early trading.
Although the major averages retreated from their best levels late in the day, they still closed modestly higher. The Dow climbed 96.70 points, or 0.2 percent, to 40,659.76, the Nasdaq rose 37.22 points, or 0.2 percent, to 17,631.72, and the S&P 500 edged up 11.03 points, or 0.2 percent, to 5,554.25.
For the week, the Nasdaq soared by 5.3 percent, the S&P 500 spiked by 3.9 percent, and the Dow surged by 2.9 percent.
In overseas markets, the Asia-Pacific region had a mixed performance on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index dropped by 1.8 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index increased by 0.5 percent.
Meanwhile, major European markets have all moved higher. The French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.5 percent, the German DAX Index by 0.3 percent, and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index by 0.1 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are down $0.77 to $75.88 a barrel after falling $1.51 to $76.65 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, gold futures have slipped $5.40 to $2,532.40 an ounce after surging $45.40 to $2,537.80 an ounce in the previous session.
In currency trading, the U.S. dollar is at 146.15 yen compared to 147.63 yen at Friday's New York close. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1036 compared to Friday's $1.1027.
