US pre-open: Stocks seen muted ahead of shorter trading session

US stock futures pointed to a fairly muted open on Wall Street on Monday, ahead of a holiday-shortened session.

At 1230 BST, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.1%, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were flat and 0.1% firmer, respectively.

Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets, said: "Markets are starting the second half of the year with seemingly abundant optimism and unfazed by the strong run that defined the last six months.

"Given further rate hikes are still expected from the Federal Reserve, the robust mindset here is certainly to be applauded, although the obvious question amidst spiralling valuations for at least some assets is whether the party atmosphere simply kicks the problem further down the road.

"With Independence Day looming, markets will be closing at lunchtime today and only resuming on Wednesday. ISM Manufacturing prints are due shortly after the opening bell although again the expectations here are for an improving situation to be seen as even if signs of contraction remain, it’s likely to be at a diminished rate."

Mahony called the Dow down four points at 34,404 and the S&P down one at 4,449.

In equity markets, Tesla jumped nearly 7% in pre-market trade after the electric car maker reported record delivery numbers.

Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Tesla’s cut price gamble appears to be paying off handsomely as it makes deeper inroads into the Chinese market. The firm delivered a record number of vehicles in the three months to the end of June, helped by surging sales in China where the competition from home grown EV manufacturers is fierce.

"Offering more affordable price tags has been a shrewd move in other markets too, where consumers have been grappling with the cost-of-living crisis but are still eager to join the electric vehicle revolution."