U.S. Stocks May Move Modestly Lower In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - Following back-to-back positive weeks, stocks may move to the downside in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly lower open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by 0.1 percent.

Traders may look to cash in on recent strength in the markets, which saw the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reach new record highs.

Overall trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, as traders look ahead to a meeting between President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders later today.

The meeting at the White House comes after Trump's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last Friday in Alaska yielded in 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 "with Russia almost immediately, if he wants to."

Traders also looking ahead to comments from central bank officials at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium later this week along with earnings news from big-name retailers like Walmart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD).

Not long after the start of trading, the National Association of Home Builders is scheduled to release its report on homebuilder confidence in the month of August. The housing market index is expected to come in unchanged in August after inching up to 33 in July.

Following the lackluster performance seen in Thursday's previous session, stocks moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 moved to the downside, although the narrower Dow managed to post a modest gain.

While the Dow inched up 34.86 points or 0.1 percent to 44,946.12, the S&P 500 fell 18.74 points or 0.3 percent to 6,449.80 and the Nasdaq slid 87.69 points or 0.4 percent to 21,622.98.

Despite the lower close on the day, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 advanced by 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively, for the week. The Dow also posted a strong weekly gain of 1.7 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turning in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.8 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell by 0.4 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.1 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are rising $0.23 to $63.03 a barrel after tumbling $1.16 to $62.80 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after edging down $0.60 to $3,382.60 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are inching up $9.90 to $3,392.50 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 147.76 yen versus the 147.19 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1670 compared to last Friday's $1.1703.