Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a steady to higher open on Monday, amid ongoing uncertainty over whether the Federal Reserve will soon begin tapering its stimulus program.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.01% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.04% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.12% increase.
Investors remained cautious ahead of the minutes of the Fed's July meeting, due out on Wednesday, for further indications as to when the central bank may start to unwind its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Expectations that the Fed may begin tapering as soon as September were boosted late last week after data showed that U.S. weekly jobless claims fell to an almost six year low.
The financial sector was expected to be active, amid reports Blackstone Group is in talks to buy a stake in Goldman Sachs' European insurance business.
Separately, McGraw Hill Financial and its Standard & Poor's unit were said to be seeking information from the U.S. Justice Department about the decision to target the company in the first federal case against a ratings firm for grades related to the credit crisis.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase fell 0.13% in pre-market trade, after weekend reports that U.S. authorities have opened a bribery investigation into whether the bank hired the children of Chinese officials to help it win lucrative business.
Among retailers Wal-Mart Stores said it took a USD680 million hit to sales in the second quarter because of the stronger dollar, sending shares tumbling 0.90% in early trading.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included International Rectifier, Urban Outfitters and Bob Evans, scheduled to post results later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.51%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.55%, Germany's DAX slipped 0.09%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.11%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.24%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.79%.
Ahead of the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointed to a 0.01% gain, S&P 500 futures signaled a 0.04% rise, while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0.12% increase.
Investors remained cautious ahead of the minutes of the Fed's July meeting, due out on Wednesday, for further indications as to when the central bank may start to unwind its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Expectations that the Fed may begin tapering as soon as September were boosted late last week after data showed that U.S. weekly jobless claims fell to an almost six year low.
The financial sector was expected to be active, amid reports Blackstone Group is in talks to buy a stake in Goldman Sachs' European insurance business.
Separately, McGraw Hill Financial and its Standard & Poor's unit were said to be seeking information from the U.S. Justice Department about the decision to target the company in the first federal case against a ratings firm for grades related to the credit crisis.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase fell 0.13% in pre-market trade, after weekend reports that U.S. authorities have opened a bribery investigation into whether the bank hired the children of Chinese officials to help it win lucrative business.
Among retailers Wal-Mart Stores said it took a USD680 million hit to sales in the second quarter because of the stronger dollar, sending shares tumbling 0.90% in early trading.
Other stocks likely to be in focus included International Rectifier, Urban Outfitters and Bob Evans, scheduled to post results later in the day.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 dropped 0.51%, France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.55%, Germany's DAX slipped 0.09%, while Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.11%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.24%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.79%.