Stocks May Show A Lack Of Direction In Early Trading - U.S. Commentary

(RTTNews) - After turning higher over the course of the previous session, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by just 4 points.

Traders may be reluctant to make any significant moves following the volatility seen during the trading day on Thursday.

Uncertainty ahead of next week's referendum on whether Britain will remain in the European Union may also keep some traders on the sidelines.

Recent polls have shown that most British voters prefer to leave the EU, which is commonly referred to as the Brexit.

On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department recently released a report showing a modest drop in new residential construction in the month of May.

The report said housing starts edged down by 0.3 percent to an annual rate of 1.164 million in May from the revised April estimate of 1.167 million.

Economists had expected housing starts to dip to a rate of 1.150 million from the 1.172 million originally reported for the previous month.

After falling rather sharply early in the session, stocks showed a substantial turnaround over the course of the trading day on Thursday. With the recovery on the day, the major averages snapped a five-session losing streak.

The major averages eventually finished the session moderately higher. The Dow climbed 92.93 points or 0.5 percent to 17,733.10, the Nasdaq edged up 9.98 points or 0.2 percent to 4,844.92 and the S&P 500 rose 6.49 points or 0.3 percent to 2,077.99.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.2 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index advanced by 0.7 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has jumped by 1.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.9 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.7 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.94 to $47.15 a barrel after tumbling $1.80 to $46.21 a barrel on Thursday. Gold futures are currently trading at $1,291.90 an ounce, down $6.50 from the previous session's close of $1,298.40 an ounce. On Thursday, gold rose $10.10. On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 104.32 yen compared to the 104.26 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1253 compared to yesterday's $1.1225.