Choppy Trading May Persist Ahead Of Fed Minutes, Powell Speech

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Tuesday, with stocks likely to extend the lackluster performance seen in the previous session.

Traders may remain reluctant to make significant moves ahead of some key economic events later in the week, including the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy meeting on Wednesday and the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium that gets underway on Thursday.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak at the symposium on Friday, with his remarks potentially impacting the outlook for interest rates.

According to CME Group's FedWatch Tool, there is an 83.1 percent chance the Fed will lower interest rates by a quarter point at its next monetary policy meeting in September.

Reports on weekly jobless claims, existing home sales and leading economic indicators may also attract some attention in the coming days.

On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department released a report this morning unexpectedly showing a sharp increase by new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of July.

Following back-to-back positive weeks, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading session on Monday. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing little changed.

While the tech-heavy Nasdaq inched up 6.80 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 21,629.77, the S&P 500 edged down 0.65 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 6,449.15 and the Dow slipped 34.30 points or 0.1 percent to 44,911.82.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders kept an eye on the White House, where President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders.

The meetings at the White House come after Trump's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last Friday in Alaska yielded some progress but failed to result in a concrete agreement to end the war in Ukraine.

In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump claimed Zelenskyy has the power to "end the war with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to."

Traders were also looking ahead to comments from central bank officials at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium later this week.

On the U.S. economic front, the National Association of Home Builders released a report showing a modest deterioration by U.S. homebuilder confidence in the month of August.

The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index edged down to 32 in August after inching up to 33 in July. Economists had expected the index to come in unchanged. Most of the major sectors showed only modest moves on the day, contributing to the lackluster performance by the broader markets.

Natural gas stocks showed a notable move to the downside, however, with the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index falling by 1.5 percent amid a decrease by the price of the commodity.

Commercial real estate stocks also saw some weakness, while oil service stocks moved higher along with the price of crude oil, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 1.2 percent.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are falling $0.70 to $62.72 a barrel after climbing $0.62 to $63.42 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after edging down $4.60 to $3,378 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are inching up $2.80 to $3,380.80 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 147.76 yen compared to the 147.89 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1677 compared to yesterday's $1.1661.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mostly lower on Tuesday as investors awaited keynote speeches from top central bankers, including Fed Chair Jerome Powell, for signals on the path of interest rates.

The Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole Symposium that gets underway on Thursday could shed light on whether the U.S. central bank will cut interest rates in September.

On the geopolitical front, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that the U.S., Russia and Ukraine would soon hold a trilateral meeting to discuss a pathway to end Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Traders also awaited updates from some of the biggest U.S. retailers as new tariffs take effect.

China's Shanghai Composite Index fluctuated before ending marginally lower at 3,727.29. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed 0.2 percent lower at 25,122.90.

Japanese markets slipped from record highs as investors booked profits after recent strong gains. The Nikkei 225 Index dipped 0.4 percent to 43,546.29, while the broader Topix Index closed 0.1 percent lower at 3,116.63.

SoftBank Group shares reversed early gains to end 4 percent lower after the technology investor announced it would take a $2 billion equity stake in Intel.

Seoul stocks ended lower for a second day running as confusion prevailed over U.S. tariffs despite the announcement of a series of trade deals. The Kospi settled 0.8 percent lower at 3,151.56.

Australian markets fell notably as downbeat earnings news offset data showing a surge in Australian consumer sentiment to its highest level in more than three years in August.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index fell 0.7 percent to 8,896.20, while the broader All Ordinaries Index closed down 0.7 percent at 9,173.80.

Biotech giant CSL plunged nearly 17 percent after reporting disappointing earnings and unveiling plans to demerge its influenza vaccine unit Seqirus by 2026.

Oil & gas major Woodside Energy Group declined 2.8 percent after it reported a 24 percent fall in its first-half profit. Mining giant BHP advanced 1.6 percent despite reporting falling profits.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index dropped 0.3 percent to 12,928.68, retreating from its highest level since February, reached the day before.

The dollar index rose slightly in Asian trading after Trump pledged security guarantees to Volodymyr Zelenskyy in any peace deal with Russia. Gold prices were modestly higher, while oil prices fell nearly 1 percent amid Ukraine peace efforts.

Europe

European stocks have moved mostly higher on Tuesday as investors weigh the possibility of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump described his recent meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders as 'very good" and said he's begun arranging a meeting between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, possibly within the next two weeks.

Zelenskyy said he is open to "any format" of talks and would decide on a trilateral meeting based on how the first round goes.

While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1.0 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.3 percent.

In corporate news, Swiss drug developer Basilea Pharmaceutica has plunged despite updating its 2025 financial guidance.

British healthcare estate investor Assura has risen as Ed Smith stepped down as chairman of the board after seven years in the role.

International Workplace Group has tumbled after the office space provider reported a dip in first-half revenue.

U.S. Economic News

A report released by the Commerce Department on Tuesday unexpectedly showed a sharp increase by new residential construction in the U.S. in the month of July.

The Commerce Department said housing starts surged by 5.2 percent to an annual rate of 1.428 million in July after spiking by 5.9 percent to an upwardly revised rate of 1.358 million in June.

Economists had expected housing starts to slump by 2.4 percent to an annual rate of 1.290 million from the 1.321 million originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report said building permits tumbled by 2.8 percent to an annual rate of 1.354 million in July after edging down by 0.1 percent to a downwardly revised rate of 1.393 million in June.

Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to fall by 0.5 percent to an annual rate of 1.390 million from the 1.397 million originally reported for the previous month.

At 2:10 pm ET, Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is scheduled to speak on "Fostering New Technology in the Banking System" at the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium 2025.