Wall Street May Open Weak; Economic Data In Focus
(RTTNews) - Lower futures and rising concerns about U.S.-Iran tensions point to a weak start on Wall Street Tuesday morning. A slew of economic data due this morning will provide some direction to the market.
The Dow futures are down 0.07 percent, the S&P futures are lower by 0.4 percent and the Nasdaq futures are down nearly 1.1 percent.
Oil prices edged higher amid rising U.S.-Iran tensions and concerns over the prospects of a diplomatic resolution to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy supplies.
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he is not interested in renewing the expiring ceasefire agreement with Iran and threatened to bomb Oman if it "gets in the way" of a deal with Iran on the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump said that informal talks are taking place with Iran's Revolutionary Guard, but he is "not in a hurry" to make a deal.
Meanwhile, Iran has announced reaching an understanding with Oman over the route for maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and said it is preparing to shift to a "fully offensive" military posture.
On the economic front, data on housing starts and building permits for the month of July, as well as data on import prices, pending home sales, capacity utilization and industrial production, all for the month of July, are due this morning.
In earnings news, Home Depot, Inc. (HD) reported second-quarter bottom line of $4.766 billion, or $4.79 per share, compared with $4.551 billion, or $4.58 per share in the year-ago quarter.
Stocks moved lower on Monday after showing a lack of direction earlier in the session. The major averages all moved to the downside, extending the modest pullback seen a session earlier.
Higher crude oil prices amid concerns about a re-escalation of the Middle East conflict rendered the mood cautious.
The S&P 500 ended down 40.70 points or 0.5 percent at 7,745.06, the Dow slid 272.63 points or 0.5 percent to 53,459.78, while the Nasdaq fell 84.25 points or 0.3 percent to 26,644.91.
Asian stocks ended broadly lower on Tuesday as high oil prices and rising bond yields amid fading prospects of a lasting U.S.-Iran peace deal rendered the mood a bit bearish.
European stocks are turning in a mixed performance in cautious trade with investors assessing the situation in the Middle East and awaiting fresh data for directional clues.
In commodities trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are up $0.81 or 0.97 percent at $85.31 a barrel. Gold futures are down $27.00 or 0.6 percent at $4,446.70 an ounce.
