WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After pointing to higher open earlier this morning, stock futures have pulled back sharply in recent pre-market trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by just 7 points.
The pullback by the futures came after a tweet from CNBC's Beijing Bureau Chief Eunice Yoon suggested Chinese officials have grown pessimistic about the chances for a trade deal.
'Mood in Beijing about trade deal is pessimistic, government source tells me. China troubled after Trump said no tariff rollback. (China thought both had agreed in principle.)' Yoon tweeted.
She added, 'Strategy now to talk but wait due to impeachment, US election. Also prioritize China economic support.'
The futures had previously benefited from a weekend report from Chinese state media indicating the U.S. and China had 'constructive discussions' regarding a phase one trade deal in a high-level phone call.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reportedly talked with Chinese Vice Premier Liu He about the core issues for an agreement.
Traders have recently put tremendous faith in reports and comments about the trade talks, highlighting the importance of a trade deal to the global economic outlook.
Optimism a trade agreement will eventually be reached has helped propel stocks to record highs, although it remains to be seen if a deal will be finalized and actually benefit U.S. producers.
Shortly after the start of trading, the National Association Of Home Builders is scheduled to release its report on homebuilder confidence in the month of November. The housing market index is expected to come in unchanged after jumping to 71 in October.
Following the lackluster performance seen over the past several sessions, stocks showed a strong move to the upside during trading on Friday. With the upward move on the day, the major averages all reached new record highs.
The major averages saw continued strength going into the close, ending the session at their best levels of the day. The Dow jumped 222.93 points or 0.8 percent to 28,004.89, the Nasdaq climbed 61.81 points or 0.7 percent to 8,540.83 and the S&P 500 advanced 23.83 points or 0.8 percent to 3,120.46.
For the week, the Dow surged up by 1.2 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 climbed by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively.
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