U.S. Stocks May Regain Ground Ahead Of Powell Speech

(RTTNews) - After trending lower over the past several sessions, stocks may move back to the upside in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.

Traders may look to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels following the recent weakness, which has seen the S&P 500 close lower for five straight sessions.

However, early trading is likely to be impacted by reaction to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's highly-anticipated speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium later this morning.

Powell's remarks could have a significant impact on the outlook for rates ahead of the Fed's next monetary policy meeting in September.

Chris Zaccarelli, Chief Investment Officer for Northlight Asset Management, has predicted Powell will "keep his cards close to his vest" and emphasize that the Fed will need to see upcoming jobs and inflation data before making a determination whether or not to cut interest rates next month.

Ahead of Powell's speech, CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating a 71.3 percent chance the Fed will lower rates by a quarter point next month, down from 85.4 percent a week ago.

Stocks fluctuated early in the session on Thursday before mostly lower over the course of the trading day. The major averages all moved to the downside on the day, with the S&P 500 closing lower for the fifth consecutive session.

The major averages finished the day off their worst levels but still in negative territory. The S&P 500 slid 25.61 points or 0.4 percent to 6,370.17, the Nasdaq fell 75.55 points or 0.3 percent to 21,100.31 and the Dow declined 152.81 points or 0.3 percent to 44,785.50.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in yet another mixed performance on Friday. China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.5 percent and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index inched up by 0.1 percent, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index slid by 0.6 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are little changed. While the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index are both up by 0.1 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are inching up $0.07 to $63.59 a barrel after advancing $0.81 to $63.52 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after slipping $6.90 to $3,381.60 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are falling $13.10 to $3,368.50 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 148.60 yen versus the 148.37 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1610 compared to yesterday's $1.1606.