U.S. Stocks May Give Back Ground In Early Trading

After turning in a strong performance last week, stocks may give back ground in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly lower open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by 0.2 percent.

Traders may look to cash in on recent strength in the markets, which lifted the Nasdaq and S&P 500 to new record closing highs last Friday.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as a lack of major U.S. economic data may keep traders on the sidelines ahead of several key events later this week.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s congressional testimony is likely to be in focus, as investors on Wall Street analyze the central bank chief’s comments for clues about the outlook for interest rates.

Powell is due to testify before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday and the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday.

Later in the week, the spotlight will shift to the Labor Department’s report on the employment situation in the month of February.

The report, which is due to be released on Friday, is expected to show employment jumped by 200,000 jobs in February after surging by 353,000 jobs in January.

On Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management is due to release its report on service sector activity in the month of February.

The ISM’s services PMI is expected to edge down to 53.0 in February from 53.4 in January, although a reading above 50 would still indicate growth.

Reports on factory orders, private sector employment, weekly jobless claims and the U.S. trade deficit are also due to be released this week along with the Fed’s Beige Book.

Stocks showed a strong move to the upside during trading on Friday, adding to the gains posted in Thursday’s session. With the extended upward move, the Nasdaq and S&P 500 once again reached new record closing highs.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 183.02 points or 1.1 percent to 16,274.94 and the S&P 500 climbed 40.81 points or 0.8 percent to 5,137.08. The narrower Dow posted a more modest gain, rising 90.99 points or 0.2 percent to 39,087.38.

For the week, the Nasdaq shot up by 1.7 percent and the S&P 500 advanced by 1.0 percent, but the Dow edged down by 0.1 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.5 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are turning in a mixed performance on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.1 percent, the German DAX Index is just below the unchanged line and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.7 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.42 to $79.55 a barrel after jumping $1.71 to $79.97 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after surging $41 to $2,095.70 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are edging down $5.30 to $2,090.40 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 150.49 yen versus the 150.12 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0848 compared to last Friday’s $1.0837.