Higher Open Expected For Wall Street: Oil Price Jumps

Higher open likely for Wall Street Friday after the important U.S. stock index futures looked up Friday morning.

At 06:45 a.m. ET, Dow Jones futures jumped 47 points, indicating a positive open of around 30 points. The S&P and Nasdaq futures were also up.

Market participants waited for the key speech from the Federal Reserve’s chairman later in the day with expected clues on future rate cuts this year.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s keynote address at the central bank’s annual Jackson Hole symposium will be around 10:00 a.m. ET.

Analysts say markets have already priced a possible rate cut in September.

“Interest in the Powell speech will be in whether he maintains the line that last months’ action represented no more than a “mid-cycle” adjustment or “insurance” cut,” said Ray Attrill, foreign exchange analyst at the National Australia Bank.

On data, new home sales stats for July will be released at around 10:00 a.m. ET.

At the earnings front, there will be Foot Locker, Buckle and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers reporting the quarterly results before the bell.

In Europe, stocks were high on Friday morning as investors awaited Powell’s words on the direction of interest rate management.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 climbed 0.5 percent early in the session.

Oil price rises

Oil prices jumped on Friday. Brent crossed $60 a barrel milestone, as supply tightening from key producers offset the anxiety of lower demand growth.

Brent crude rose 0.5 percent to $60.21 a barrel by 0629 GMT, while U.S. crude futures jumped 0.3 percent at $55.53 a barrel.

“Oil is set to trade quietly today as it’s all about the Jackson Hole meeting tonight,” said Jeffrey Halley, a Singapore-based senior market analyst at brokerage Oanda.

Brent prices were hit in August after the International Energy Agency and OPEC slashed their demand growth outlook due to the U.S.-China trade war.

Asian markets up

Asia Pacific markets traded high on Friday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.4 percent while the Topix index added 0.23 percent. But South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.14 percent.

Tensions between Japan and South Korea escalated on Thursday after Seoul scrapped an intelligence-sharing pact with Tokyo.

Stock market news on mainland Chinese shares noted the surge after recouping previous losses. Shanghai composite jumped 0.49 percent while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index climbed 0.67 percent.

Australia’s ASX 200 gained 0.33 percent.

Indian share markets started on a lower note but rebounded and closed higher on Friday as the government reportedly agreed to roll back taxes on foreign portfolio investors.

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 228 points higher while the broader NSE Nifty50 index gained 88 points to end the day.

Gold price slips

Gold price slipped on Friday as investors sought to cash in on some gains before Fed chief’s Jackson Hole speech, where new clarity is expected on liquidity and rate cuts.

Spot gold fell 0.2 percent to $1,495.80 per ounce as of 0805 GMT. The U.S. gold futures lost 0.2 percent to $1,505.50 an ounce.

However, the outlook on gold is still bright, said John Sharma, an economist with National Australia Bank.

“There are still concerns about the economy, trade uncertainty, geopolitical tensions; all these things have not gone away, which is supportive for gold,” Sharma added.