U.S. Stocks May See Further Upside In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Stocks are likely to move to the upside in early trading on Monday, extending the upward move seen over the course of last Friday's session. 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 a report from the Wall Street Journal indicating the Trump administration is quietly watering down some of the tariffs that underpin the president's signature economic policy.

The Wall Street Journal said President Donald Trump has exempted dozens of products from his "reciprocal tariffs" in recent weeks and offered to carve out hundreds more goods when countries strike trade deals with the U.S.

However, traders may be somewhat reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of closely watched report on consumer price inflation on Friday.

Despite the ongoing government shutdown, Bureau of Labor Statistics said the consumer price index data will be released, as it allows the Social Security Administration to meet statutory deadlines necessary to ensure the accurate and timely payment of benefits.

Earnings season also picks up steam this week, with Coca-Cola (KO), General Motors (GM), Netflix (NFLX), AT&T (T), IBM Corp. (IBM), Tesla (TSLA), and Intel (INTC) among a slew of big-name companies due to report their quarterly results.

After showing a lack of direction early in the session, stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday. The major averages all moved to the upside, regaining ground following the downturn seen during Thursday's session.

The major averages finished the day off their highs of the session but still firmly in positive territory. The Dow advanced 238.37 points or 0.5 percent to 46,190.61, the Nasdaq climbed 117.44 points or 0.5 percent to 22,679.97 and the S&P 500 rose 34.94 points or 0.5 percent to 6,664.01.

With the rebound on the day, the major averages posted strong gains for the week. The Nasdaq surged by 2.1 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Dow jumped by 1.7 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index spiked by 3.4 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shot up by 2.4 percent.

Most European stocks have also moved to the upside on the day. The German DAX Index is up by 1.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent, although the French CAC 40 Index is roughly flat.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.45 to $57.09 a barrel after inching up $0.08 to $57.54 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after plunging $91.30 to $4,213.30 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are surging $110.20 to $4,323.50 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 150.63 yen versus the 150.62 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1655 compared to last Friday's $1.1651.