Modest Open Likely For US Markets: Oil Price Flat

Modest open likely for the U.S. markets Tuesday after the main U.S. stock index futures looked flat on Tuesday morning.

At 7 a.m. ET, Dow Jones futures showed a negative open of fewer than 20 points. The futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were also looking unchanged.

Wall Street had a good session on Monday as a rebound in bond yields boosted sentiments and doused recession fears.

The U.S gesture of giving another extension to the controversial Chinese company Huawei for doing business with American firms was a positive signal at the China trade war front.

At the same time, the U.S. added 46 Huawei affiliates into the blacklist. The Federal Reserve’s minutes of the latest meeting on Wednesday is being keenly awaited.

In earnings reports, Home Depot, Medtronic and Toll Brothers will be releasing their latest quarterly earnings.

European stocks were up on Tuesday morning as hopes for monetary policy stimulus soothed investor concerns over a looming recession.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 edged was up 0.2 percent, with most sectors in the positive territory.

Oil price steady

Crude oil prices were relatively steady on Tuesday as market exuded optimism over a thaw in U.S.-China trade war and news of stimulus from Germany and other economies. This helped in countering slowdown fears that could hurt oil demand.

Brent crude jumped 1 cent to $59.75 a barrel by 0344 GMT, after rising 1.88 percent on Monday. The U.S. crude slipped 6 cents to $56.15 a barrel, after gaining 2.44 percent in the previous session.

A rally in equity markets also supported oil prices from falling.

Still, volatility in oil prices is not yet out after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outlook report stoked concerns about the skewed oil demand growth.

Asian markets mixed

In stock market news, markets in Asia were a mixed bag. In mainland Chinese stocks, the Shanghai composite lost 0.11 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.3 percent.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.55 percent while the Topix index added 0.83 percent. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.05 percent.

Chinese companies are set to gain from China’s new loan prime rates (LPR) unveiled over the weekend. For analysts, the reform is more of a guided rate cut. The new 1-year LPR is 4.25 percent Vs 4.31 percent of the past.

Australia’s ASX 200 closed 1.2 percent with most sectors in the positive territory.

Australia listed mining giant BHP Group posted the largest ever annual profit in five years on Tuesday and will deliver record full-year dividends to investors.

But share price slipped as the miner flagged global economic headwinds in the guidance ahead.

The superb performance was aided by the soaring iron ore prices following supply outages in Brazil and Australia.

Indian shares traded lower Tuesday. The broader NSE Nifty 50 closed 0.33 percent down while the benchmark BSE Sensex 30 fell 0.2 percent. The Indian rupee weakened to the lowest since February.

Gold price flat

Gold prices were unchanged on Tuesday. The yellow metal declined 1. 2 percent on Monday after investors showed more risk appetite.

Spot gold was at $1,495.21 per ounce at 0438 GMT. The U.S. gold futures fell 0.4 percent to $1,505.20 an ounce.