WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks may move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday, extending a recent upward trend. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.
The markets may continue to benefit from recent upward momentum, which led the Dow and the S&P 500 to close higher for the fourth straight session on Monday.
Yesterday's gains lifted the Dow and the S&P 500 to their best closing levels in over a month, while the Nasdaq is just off the six-month closing high set last Friday.
Energy stocks may lead the way higher once again, as the price of crude oil is seeing further upside after soaring on Monday following OPEC+'s output reduction.
Overall trading may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.
Not long after the start of trading, the Commerce Department is scheduled to release its report on new orders for manufactured goods in the month of February. Economists expect factory orders to decrease by 0.5 percent in February after slumping by 1.6 percent in January.
The Labor Department is also due to release its report on job openings in the month of February. Job openings are expected to decline to 10.4 million in February from 10.8 million in January.
U.S. stocks ended mostly higher on Monday, with those from the energy sector rallying sharply after a surprise production cut announcement by the OPEC+ lifted crude oil prices.
Among the major averages, the Dow ended notably higher after staying firm throughout the day's session. The S&P finished modestly higher after a choppy ride, while the Nasdaq trimmed its losses and settled well off the day's lows.
The Dow settled with a gain of 327.00 points or 1.0 percent at 33,601.15. The S&P 500 ended up 15.20 points or 0.4 percent at 4,124.51, but the Nasdaq ended lower by 32.45 points or 0.3 percent at 12,189.45.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index rose by 0.4 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index climbed by 0.5 percent.
The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index has advanced by 0.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.6 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are rising $0.56 to $80.98 a barrel after skyrocketing $4.75 to $80.42 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after climbing $14.20 to $2,000.40 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are inching up $0.20 to $2,000.60 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 132.87 yen compared to the 132.46 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0898 compared to yesterday's $1.0899.
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