Futures Pointing To Lackluster Trading On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - After ending the two previous sessions mostly lower, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Wednesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by just 16 points.

Uncertainty about the outlook for commodities prices may lead to choppy trading on Wall Street following recent weakness.

Traders are likely to keep an eye on the Energy Information Administration's petroleum status report for the week ended December 4th, which could impact crude oil prices.

Last week, the EIA said crude oil stockpiles rose by 1.2 million barrels in the week ended November 27th, with stockpiles near levels not seen for this time of the year in at least the last 80 years.

The Commerce Department is also scheduled to release its report on wholesale inventories in October, although the data does not typically move the markets.

Economists expect wholesale inventories to have risen by 0.2 percent in October following a 0.5 percent increase in September.

Later in the day, the Treasury Department is due to continue this week's series of long-term securities auctions with the sale of $21 billion worth of ten-year notes.