WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the long holiday weekend, stocks may come under pressure as traders return to their desks on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a lower open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by 191 points.
Negative sentiment may be generated in reaction to new tariffs taking effect over the Labor Day weekend in the escalating U.S.-China trade.
The U.S. officially imposed a 15 percent tariff on approximately $112 billion worth of Chinese imports, leading to Chinese retaliatory tariffs on billions of dollars worth of U.S. goods.
President Donald Trump repeated his claim in remarks to reporters on Sunday that China is paying for the tariffs by devaluing their currency.
Trump indicated U.S. and Chinese officials still plan to meet for trade talks this month but argued the U.S. 'can't allow China to rip us off anymore as a country.'
Shortly after the start of trading, the Institute for Supply Management is scheduled to release its report on manufacturing activity in the month of August.
The ISM's purchasing managers index is expected to edge down to 51.0 in August after slipping to 51.2 in July, although a reading above 50 would still indicate growth in the manufacturing sector.
The Commerce Department is also due to release its report on construction spending in the month of July. Construction spending is expected to rise by 0.3 percent in July after plunging by 1.3 percent in June.
Later this week, traders are likely to keep a close eye on the Labor Department's monthly jobs report for August as well as a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
After moving sharply higher over the course of trading last Wednesday and Thursday, stocks showed a lack of direction during trading last Friday. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing mixed.
The Dow edged up 41.03 points or 0.2 percent to 26,403.28, the best closing level for the blue chip index in nearly a month. The S&P 500 also crept up 1.88 points or 0.1 percent to 2,926.46, while the Nasdaq dipped 10.51 points or 0.1 percent to 7,962.88.
Even with the mixed performance on the day, the major averages all moved sharply higher for the week, The Dow surged up by 3 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq jumped by 2.8 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index closed just above the unchanged line, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell by 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has slid by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are both down by 0.2 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are tumbling $1.26 to $53.84 a barrel after plunging $1.61 to $55.10 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $1,541.20, up $11.80 from the previous session's close of $1,529.40. On Friday, gold slid $7.50.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is unchanged compared to the 106.24 yen it fetched on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0941 compared to yesterday's $1.0969.
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