U.S. Stocks May See Initial Strength As Crude Oil Extends Pullback

(RTTNews) - Stocks are likely to move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday, regaining ground after ending the previous session mostly lower. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.4 percent. Early buying interest may be generated in reaction to an extended nosedive by the price of crude oil, which continues to give back ground after snapping a six-day winning streak on Monday. After plunging by more than 2 percent during yesterday's trading, U.S. crude oil futures are plummeting by more than 3 percent. The extended pullback in crude oil prices comes after the Treasury Department officially announced "Operation Economic Outcast," calling it an unprecedented, whole-of-government, economic campaign against Iran and its "enablers." While the U.S. sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels that it said "enable the Iranian regime's recklessness," traders seem relieved the Treasury stopped short of immediate secondary sanctions against other countries sustaining Iran's trade. The steep drop in crude oil prices has also contributed to a continued decrease in treasury yields, which is also contributing to the positive sentiment on Wall Street. However, overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued as traders look ahead to key events in the coming days, including the release of key U.S. inflation data, Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly earnings and the Jackson Hole economic symposium. Not long after the start of trading, the Conference Board is due to release its report on consumer confidence in the month of August. The consumer confidence index is expected to edge down to 90.1 in August after falling to 90.8 in July. The Commerce Department is also due to release its report on new home sales in the month of July. New home sales are expected to drop to an annual rate of 620,000 in July after jumping to an annual rate of 628,000 in June. After coming under pressure early in the session, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading day on Monday but largely maintained a negative bias. The tech-heavy Nasdaq showed a notable decline on the day, ending the session at its lowest closing level in three weeks. The Nasdaq ended the day off its early lows but still closed down 200.26 points or 0.8 percent at 25,980.19. The S&P 500 also fell 21.51 points or 0.3 percent to 7,652.86. Meanwhile, the narrower Dow bucked the downtrend and rose 140.15 points or 0.3 percent to 53,417.16 amid strong gains by Visa (V), Walmart (WMT) and Disney (DIS). In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.5 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index edged up by 0.2 percent. The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 0.8 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.3 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent. In commodities trading, crude oil futures are plummeting $2.44 to $82.57 a barrel after plunging $2.05 to $85.01 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after rising $17.20 to $4,697.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are edging down $5.60 to $4,692.20 an ounce. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 159.25 yen compared to the 159.08 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is unchanged compared to yesterday's $1.1662.

(RTTNews) - Stocks are likely to move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday, regaining ground after ending the previous session mostly lower. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.4 percent.

Early buying interest may be generated in reaction to an extended nosedive by the price of crude oil, which continues to give back ground after snapping a six-day winning streak on Monday.

After plunging by more than 2 percent during yesterday's trading, U.S. crude oil futures are plummeting by more than 3 percent.

The extended pullback in crude oil prices comes after the Treasury Department officially announced "Operation Economic Outcast," calling it an unprecedented, whole-of-government, economic campaign against Iran and its "enablers."

While the U.S. sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels that it said "enable the Iranian regime's recklessness," traders seem relieved the Treasury stopped short of immediate secondary sanctions against other countries sustaining Iran's trade.

The steep drop in crude oil prices has also contributed to a continued decrease in treasury yields, which is also contributing to the positive sentiment on Wall Street.

However, overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued as traders look ahead to key events in the coming days, including the release of key U.S. inflation data, Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly earnings and the Jackson Hole economic symposium.