U.S. Market Futures Pointing Lower after Record Highs

U.S. stock futures are pointing higher in pre-market trading for Tuesday, August 16. The Dow Futures are at 18557.0 for a loss of -25.00 points. The S&P 500 Futures are at 2184.25 down -1.75 points. The Nasdaq Futures are lower at 4820.0 for a loss of -2.75 points. The Russell Futures are lower at 1239.0 for a loss of -0.80 points.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere Japan’s Nikkei 225 is at 16596.51 for a loss of -273.05 points or -1.62 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was at 22910.84 for a loss of -21.67 points or -0.09 percent. China’s Shanghai Composite was at 3110.04 for a loss of -15.16 points or -0.49 percent. India’s S&P BSE Sensex was at 28064.61 for a loss of -87.79 points or -0.31 percent. In Europe, the FTSE 100 is at 6912.88 for a loss of -28.31 points or -0.41 percent. Germany’s DAX is at 10680.94 for a loss of-58.27 points or -0.54 percent. France’s CAC 40 is at 4476.49 for a loss of -21.37 points or -0.48 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index is at 344.47 for a loss of -1.58 points or -0.46 percent.

Tuesday’s Factors and Events

Investors will be looking to Tuesday’s economic reports for market direction. On the calendar for Tuesday includes the Consumer Price Index, Housing Starts, Industrial Production and E-Commerce Retail Sales. Also on the calendar will be the 4-week and 52-week bill auctions from the Treasury. Fed official, Dennis Lockhart, is also scheduled to speak on Tuesday.

Stocks trading actively in the pre-market include the following:

Endo International

Clorox

NRG Energy

Consolidated Edison

Duke Energy

Corning

Regions Financial

Nordstrom

American Airlines

Second quarter earnings are beginning to slow down with approximately only 30 companies reporting on Tuesday. U.S. stocks futures are pointing lower after a record day for stocks on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&p 500 and Nasdaq Composite all reached new highs. Positive sentiment is expected to continue as the market has a positive outlook on the remainder of the year. The focus will be on the Federal Reserve’s minutes Wednesday and next policy meeting in September. With fixed income yields low, investors are still continuing to turn to the equity market.

Monday’s Activity

On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18636.05 for a gain of 59.58 points or 0.32 percent. The S&P 500 was also higher, closing at 2190.15 for a gain of 6.10 points or 0.28 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed higher at 5262.02 for a gain of 29.12 points or 0.56 percent.

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Source: DJIA, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite. Google Finance.

Other notable index closes on Monday included the small-cap Russell 2000 Index, higher at 1241.86 for a gain of 12.04 points or 0.98 percent; the S&P 600 Small-Cap Index, higher at 750.96 for a gain of 6.80 points or 0.91 percent; the the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index closing at 1569.10 for a gain of 11.33 points or 0.73 percent; the S&P 100 Index closing at 968.82 for a gain of 2.31 points or 0.24 percent; the Russell 3000 Index closing at 1294.99 for a gain of 4.82 points or 0.37 percent; the Russell 1000 Index closing at 1213.55 for a gain of 3.92 points or 0.32 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index closing at 621.10 for a gain of -0.26 points or -0.04 percent.