U.S. Futures Largely Unchanged; Employment Data, Inflation Highlight Busy Week By

© Reuters.

By Peter Nurse    

Fxgecko.com -- U.S. stocks are seen opening largely unchanged Monday, with investors keeping a wary eye on developments in Ukraine at the start of a week that includes the release of key inflation and employment data.

At 7 AM ET (1100 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up just 4 points, less than 0.1%; S&P 500 Futures traded 1 point, less than 0.1%, lower; and Nasdaq 100 Futures dropped 20 points, or 0.1%.

The three main averages on Wall Street posted gains last week, their second consecutive winning week, with the broad-based S&P 500 index now having more than erased its losses since Russia invaded its southern neighbor in late February.

Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams are set to meet in Turkey this week, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky telling independent Russian reporters that he would be willing to accept permanent neutrality as a basis for peace, as long as it was guaranteed by third parties. 

Meanwhile, the White House has rowed back on President Joe Biden's weekend remarks calling for the departure of Vladimir Putin as Russian president, saying he had not been calling for regime change.

Away from eastern Europe, investors will continue to focus on the strength of the U.S. economy and the Federal Reserve’s plans for upcoming interest rate hikes. 

The monthly nonfarm payrolls report for March is due on Friday, with economists expecting the U.S. economy to have added another 475,000 jobs, after 678,000 were created in February.

Additionally, February figures on personal income and spending arrive on Thursday, with the widely-watched core PCE price index seen rising to rise 5.5% on an annual basis, staying well above the Fed’s 2% inflation target.

The strength of the economy coupled with the soaring inflation levels have seen investors price in an aggressive rate hike cycle, pushing the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield to a fresh multi-year high of 2.5% on Friday.

In the corporate sector, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) will be in focus after the U.S. electric car manufacturer said on Monday it would ask shareholders to vote at its annual meeting to increase the number of additional shares in order to enable a stock split.

Walmart (NYSE:WMT) will also be in the spotlight after the Wall Street Journal reported that the retail giant is stopping cigarette sales in some U.S. stores.

Oil prices slumped Monday on fears of reduced demand from China, the world’s largest crude importer, as a surge in Covid-19 cases prompted the country’s officials to instigate a two-stage lockdown at its financial hub of Shanghai.

All firms and factories in Shanghai would suspend manufacturing or have people work remotely in a two-stage lockdown, closing half the city in turns, over nine days. Public transport, including ride-hailing services, will also be suspended.

By 7 AM ET, U.S. crude futures traded 4.5% lower at $108.83 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 4.1% to $112.60. 

Oil is still heading for a fourth monthly gain after Russia, the world's second-largest crude exporter, invaded Ukraine, prompting fears of disruptions to global supplies, driving prices above $100 a barrel. 

Additionally, gold futures fell 1.3% to $1,928.70/oz, while EUR/USD traded 0.1% higher at 1.0990.

 

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