WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Stocks may move to the upside in early trading on
Monday, adding to the strong gains posted last week. The major index futures are
currently pointing to a modestly higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500
futures up by 0.1 percent.

The markets may continue to benefit from recent upward momentum, which lifted
the major averages to new record highs last week.

The Dow closed above 40,000 for the first time last Friday amid renewed optimism
about the outlook for interest rates.

While the Federal Reserve is widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged
next, CME Group's FedWatch Tool is currently indicating a 74.3 percent chance
rates will be a quarter point lower by September.

Overall trading activity is likely to be somewhat subdued, however, with a lack
of major U.S. economic data keeping some traders on the sidelines.

The economic calendar remains relatively quiet throughout the week, although
reports on durable goods orders and new and existing home sales may attract some
attention.

Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of
quarterly results from AI darling Nvidia (NVDA) after the close of trading on
Wednesday.

Following the modest pullback seen over the course of Thursday's session, stocks
showed a lack of direction during trading on Friday. The major average spent the
day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing
narrowly mixed.

Despite the choppy trading, the Dow closed above 40,000 for the first time,
rising 134.21 points or 0.3 percent to 40,003.59.

The S&P 500 also crept up 6.17 points or 0.1 percent to 5,303.27, while the
tech-heavy Nasdaq edged down 12.35 points or 0.1 percent at 16,685.97.

For the week, the Nasdaq surged by 2.1 percent, while the S&P 500 jumped by 1.5
percent and the Dow shot up by 1.2 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly
higher during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.7
percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.5 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the
French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.5
percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.60 to $79.46 a barrel
after climbing $0.83 to $80.06 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after surging
$31.90 to $2,417.40 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are inching
up $6.60 to $2,424 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 156.18 yen versus the
155.65 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the
euro, the dollar is trading at $1.0857 compared to last Friday's $1.0869.



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