U.S. Stocks May Move To The Upside In Early Trading

After ending yesterday’s choppy trading session little changed, stocks may move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.2 percent.

Early buying interest may be generated in reaction to a pullback by treasury yields, which moved notably higher over the two previous sessions.

The yield on the benchmark ten-year note is giving back ground after ending Monday’s trading at its highest closing level in over four months.

Trading activity is likely to remain relatively subdued, however, with a lack of major U.S. economic data likely to keep traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of key inflation data in the coming days.

The Labor Department is scheduled to release its reports on consumer and producer inflation in the month of March on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.

Economists currently expect consumer prices to rise by 0.3 percent in March following a 0.4 percent increase in February.

Core consumer prices, which exclude food and energy prices, are also expected to climb by 0.3 percent in March after rising by 0.4 percent in February.

The annual rate of consumer price growth is expected to accelerate to 3.4 percent in March from 3.2 percent in February, while the annual rate of core consumer price growth is expected to slow to 3.7 percent for 3.8 percent.

Producer prices are expected to rise by 0.3 percent in March after climbing by 0.6 percent in February, while the annual rate of producer growth is expected to jump to 2.3 percent from 1.6 percent.

The inflation data could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates, as Federal Reserve officials have repeatedly said they need greater confidence inflation is slowing before cutting rates.

Wednesday will also see the release of the minutes of the Fed’s latest monetary policy meeting, which could also shed additional light on officials’ thinking on rates.

Following the substantial volatility seen over the final two sessions of the previous week, stocks turned in a relatively lackluster performance during trading on Monday. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing narrowly mixed.

While the Nasdaq crept up 5.44 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 16,253.96, the Dow edged down 11.24 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 38,892.80 and the S&P 500 slipped 1.95 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 5,202.39.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.1 percent, while South Korea’s Kospi slid by 0.5 percent.

The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.3 percent and the German DAX Index is down by 0.6 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are slipping $0.17 to $86.26 a barrel after falling $0.48 to $86.43 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after rising $5.60 to $2,351 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $14.10 to $2,365.10 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 151.75 yen compared to the 151.82 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0875 compared to yesterday’s $1.0859.