Early indicators for the U.S. Futures Index suggest a marginally positive opening for Wall Street on Wednesday. This week, the U.S. economic calendar appears relatively quiet, though the minutes from the latest Federal Reserve meeting and comments from Fed officials may influence investor sentiment.
During the Asian trading session, both oil and gold prices experienced modest declines.
As of 8:10 a.m. ET, Dow futures were up by 0.05 points, S&P 500 futures advanced 3.25 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures increased by 15.75 points.
U.S. major indices closed slightly higher on Friday, with the Dow climbing 96.70 points (0.2%) to 40,659.76, the Nasdaq rising by 37.22 points (0.2%) to 17,631.72, and the S&P 500 edging up 11.03 points (0.2%) to 5,554.25.
On the economic front, the E-Commerce Retail Sales report for the second quarter will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. Last quarter, retail sales saw a 2.1% increase. The Leading Indicators report for July, also scheduled for 10:00 a.m. ET, is expected to show a decline of 0.3%, following a 0.2% drop in the previous month.
Additionally, there will be a six-month Treasury bill auction at 11:30 a.m. ET.
Federal Reserve Board Governor Christopher Waller will deliver opening remarks at the Summer Workshop on Money, Banking, Payments, and Finance hosted by the Federal Reserve Board of Governors at 9:15 a.m. ET.
Asian markets displayed mixed performance on Monday. China's Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.5% to 2,893.67, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index climbed 0.8% to 17,569.57.
Conversely, Japanese markets faced downturns. The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 1.8% to 37,388.62, and the broader Topix Index fell 1.4% to 2,641.14.
In Australia, markets saw slight gains, with the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index inching up 0.1% to 7,980.40, and the broader All Ordinaries Index closing marginally higher at 8,194.80.
European shares are trading higher. Major indices in the region show the CAC 40 Index of France rising by 32.17 points (0.43%), the German DAX gaining 44.49 points (0.24%), and the U.K. FTSE 100 Index increasing by 6.75 points (0.08%).
The Swiss Market Index is currently up by 39.51 points (0.32%), while the Euro Stoxx 50 Index, which tracks 50 leading blue-chip stocks across the euro area, is up by 0.43%.
