The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a lackluster start for Wall Street on Monday, as sentiment about the economy and market continue to be downbeat.
Stocks closed firmly in the red in the week ended Sept. 23 as fears of more aggressive rate hikes and a potential looming recession sapped the risk appetite of traders. All three major averages ended with losses of 4% or more.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 Index settled at their lowest level since June 17, while the blue-chip Dow Industrials retreated to its lowest since Nov. 2020.
| Nasdaq Composite | -5.07% | 10,867.93 | |
| S&P 500 Index | -4.65% | 3,693.23 | |
| Dow Industrials | -4.0% | 29,590.41 |
| Nasdaq 100 Futures | -0.30% | |
| S&P 500 Futures | -0.54% | |
| Dow Futures | -0.57% | |
| R2K Futures | -0.60% |
Fed speeches dominate Monday’s proceedings on Main Street, with at least three Fed officials scheduled to make public appearances. Federal Reserve Open Market Committee member and Fed President Susan Collins will make a public appearance at 10 a.m. EDT. Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Raphael Bostic is scheduled to speak at 12 p.m. EDT, followed by an address by FOMC member and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester at 4 p.m. EDT.
Chicago Federal Reserve Bank’s national activity index for August is due to be released at 8:30 a.m. EDT. In July the index came in at 0.27, with ‘0’ delineating expansion and contraction in activity.
At 10:30 a.m. EDT, the Dallas Federal Reserve’s regional manufacturing activity index for September is due. The index has been in contraction territory for the past four months.
The U.S. Treasury will auction 3-month and 6-month bills at 11:30 a.m. EDT, and 2-year notes at 1 p.m. EDT.
See also: S&P 500 Circles New 2022 Lows Following Latest Fed Rate Hike: Is A Recession Inevitable?
Stocks In Focus:
- Casino stocks such as Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), Wynn Resorts Limited (NASDAQ: NASDAQ:WYNN) and MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) all are higher on the news that Macau will allow tour groups after a three-year gap.
- Social media stocks such as Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: META) and Snap, Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) could be in the spotlight as reports suggest rival TikTok could be close to clinching a security deal with the United States.
- Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA (NASDAQ:TSLA)) could see some activity following reports of a fire accident at its Berlin Gigafactory.
- XPeng, Inc. (NYSE: XPEV) was seen soaring after CEO He Xiaopeng stepped in to stem the recent stock slide by buying 2.2 million ADSs.
Crude oil futures are slipping yet again on Monday, adding to the 5.69% losses last Friday. A barrel of WTI grade crude oil is trading under the $80-a-barrel mark for a second straight session amid demand concerns stirred by the prospect of a recession.
The U.S. dollar is higher across the board, and it is notably higher against the U.K. pound, which has pulled back over 1.4% in reaction to the tax cuts announced by the new government.
Asian stocks fell across the board on Monday as recession worries gripped traders. South Korea’s Kospi fell over 3%, leading the losses in the region.
The major European markets opened Monday’s session lower but saw a modest recovery in early trading only to lose momentum and fall sharply by the late morning session.
Also, souring sentiment is the German Ifo business climate index for September, which declined from the previous month and trailed expectations as well.
In a major geopolitical development in the region, Giorgia Meloni is all set to take over as Italy’s first woman prime minister following Sunday’s elections in and lead what is expected to be the most right-wing government ever in the country since World War II.
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