WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After trending higher over the past several sessions, stocks may give back some ground in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a notably lower open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by 282 points.
Profit taking may contribute to initial weakness on Wall Street as traders cash in on the strong gains posted in recent sessions.
Selling pressure may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders generally remain optimistic about a quick economic recovery as businesses reopen following the coronavirus lockdown.
Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement on Wednesday.
The Fed is not expected to announce any significant policy changes, although traders are still likely to pay close attention to the central bank's assessment of the economic outlook.
Shortly after the start of trading, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on wholesale inventories in the month of April. Wholesale inventories are expected to rise by 0.4 percent.
Stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Monday, extending the upward trend seen over the past several sessions. With the upward move, the tech-heavy Nasdaq ended the session at a new record closing high.
The major averages saw further upside going into the close, ending the day at their highs of the session. The Dow soared 461.46 points or 1.7 percent to 27,572.44, the Nasdaq jumped 110.66 points or 1.1 percent to 9,924.74 and the S&P 500 surged up 38.46 points or 1.2 percent to 3,232.39.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index fell by 0.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.1 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has slumped by 1.2 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are down by 1.5 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.38 to $37.81 a barrel after tumbling $1.36 to $38.19 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after jumping $22.10 to $1,705.10 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are surging up $17.10 to $1,722.20 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 107.95 yen compared to the 108.43 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1300 compared to yesterday's $1.1294.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX