U.S. Stocks May Regain Ground In Early Trading

(RTTNews) - After moving notably lower to close out the previous week, stocks may regain ground in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.4 percent.

Traders may look to pick up stocks at somewhat reduced levels following the sharp pullback seen over the two previous sessions.

Tech stocks may help lead the rebound after a recent sell-off, as reflected by the 0.9 percent jump by the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures.

A pullback by the price of crude oil may also contribute to initial strength on Wall Street, with Brent crude oil futures only modestly higher after surging above $90 a barrel earlier in the day.

Crude oil prices gave back ground after Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Tehran said Tehran could pursue negotiations based on national interests.

Baghaei comments to reporters came after the U.S. completed the ninth consecutive evening of strikes against Iran.

"Oil prices have pulled back from their overnight highs on reports that Iran has received new proposals for negotiations, raising hopes that diplomatic channels remain open despite the recent escalation in hostilities," said Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com.

She added, "While the conflict remains far from resolved, the prospect of renewed talks has eased immediate concerns over further disruptions to oil supply and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz."

Not long after the start of trading, the Conference Board is scheduled to release its report on leading economic indicators in the month of June. The leading economic index is expected to come in unchanged in June after inching up by 0.1 percent in May.

Following the pullback seen in Thursday's session, stocks showed another move to the downside during trading on Friday. The major averages all moved notably lower, with the Nasdaq showing another significant decline.

The Nasdaq tumbled 361.70 points or 1.4 percent to 25,520.24, the S&P 500 slumped 76.08 points or 1 percent to 7,457.69 and the Dow slid 406.55 points or 0.8 percent to 52,146.42.

For the week, the Nasdaq plunged by 2.9 percent, the S&P 500 dove by 1.6 percent and the Dow tumbled by 0.9 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Monday, with the Japanese markets closed for a holiday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged by 2.4 percent, while South Korea's Kospi plummeted by 4.5 percent.

The major European markets are also mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.3 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.4 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are rising $0.21 to $82.70 a barrel after soaring $3.54 to $82.49 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after climbing $26.70 to $4,018.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are edging down $2.10 to $4,016.70 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 162.40 yen versus the 162.39 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1420 compared to last Friday's $1.1439.