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

(RTTNews) - With traders seemingly reluctant to make any significant moves, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the Dow futures down by just 11 points.

The lack of momentum for the markets comes as traders are looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting later this week.

The Fed is scheduled to announce its policy decision Thursday afternoon, although analysts remain split regarding whether the central bank will raise interest rates.

While upbeat economic data points to the first rate hike in nearly a decade, the recent market volatility and concerns about developing economies may keep the Fed on hold.

Ahead of the meeting, traders are likely to keep an eye on key reports on retail sales, industrial production, consumer prices, and housing starts, which could impact the Fed's decision.

There are no major U.S. economic reports due to be released today, however, potentially keeping some traders on the sidelines.

Over the weekend, China released some disappointing data, leading to speculation that the Chinese government may provide additional stimulus.

Extending the choppy trading seen on Thursday, stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading day on Friday but managed to close higher for the second straight day. The gains on the day further offset the pullback seen on Wednesday.

The major averages moved to the upside going into the close, ending the session at their best levels of the day. The Dow advanced 102.69 points or 0.6 percent to 16,433.09, the Nasdaq climbed 26.09 points or 0.5 percent to 4,822.34 and the S&P 500 rose 8.76 points or 0.5 percent to 1,961.05.

With the upward move, the major averages moved notably higher for the week. The Nasdaq surged up by 3 percent, while the Dow and the S&P 500 both jumped by 2.1 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.6 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 0.3 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the downside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index has fallen by 0.4 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both down by 0.2 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are sliding $0.42 to $44.21 a barrel after retreating $1.42 or 3.1 percent to $44.63 a barrel in the week ended September 11th. Gold futures, which fell $18.10 or 1.6 percent to $1,103.30 an ounce last week, are climbing $1.10 to $1,104.40 an ounce.

Among currencies, the U.S. dollar rose 1.1 percent against the yen last week to 120.59 yen. On the other hand, the greenback slid 1.5 percent against the euro before ending the week at $1.1338. The dollar is currently trading at 120.34 yen and is valued at $1.1307 versus the euro.