US open: Stock flat ahead of Apple results
Investors were still playing it safe ahead of the eagerly awaited quarterly results from technology giant Apple which were due out after the close and key risk events scheduled for later in the week.
At 16:11 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 0.04% at 20,922.77, even as the S&P 500 slipped 0.04% to 2,387.53 and the Nasdaq Composite retreated 0.03% to 6,089.94
LCG analyst Jasper Lawler pointed out: "Stocks in the US opened tentatively higher. First quarter results from Apple could be key for whether the Nasdaq can keep up its run of good form. Optimism for earnings growth from the FANG stocks is leading the market higher, even as the US government teeters on a shutdown.
"Trump said on Tuesday the government maybe needs a 'good shutdown'. 2% of stocks on the Nasdaq exchange hit 52-week lows on Monday when the Nasdaq Composite index closed at a record high. That’s a sign the big tech giants are covering up some broader weakness."
At the weekend, US lawmakers reached an agreement on a $1.1trn spending bill to keep the federal government ticking over until September and now investors are looking to tomorrow's Federal Reserve policy decision and the monthly US jobs report on Friday.
Societe Generale said relief that the US economy did not grind to a complete halt last quarter and optimism over faster growth this quarter means there is no compelling reason to expect the Fed to turn more dovish at this week's meeting.
"No change in the fed funds rate is expected tomorrow and the forward guidance should not change much if at all compared to the last meeting in March. Having laboured hard in 1Q to get markets to re-price future rate expectations higher, the Fed will not want to see its hard work undone especially if it emerges that 1Q economic slowdown was transitory.
"Privately, the FOMC must be content that markets are still assigning a 50% probability of a rate increase in June to 1.25%.
Those odds will be subject to change of course depending on Friday's non-farm payrolls report."
In corporate news, shares in chip-maker AMD are plummeting after the chip-maker disappointed investors with its outlook for margins.
Stock in Aetna is 0.71% higher after the health insurer said it swung to a loss in the first quarter of $1.11 per share from a profit of $2.08.
Mastercard was another top riser after the credit crad issuer posted adjusted first quarter earnings per share of $1.01, up from 86 cents in the year ago period (consensus: 95 cents).
Altria Group shares were also on the frontfoot after the cigarette-maker despite missing analysts' forecasts for both its top and bottom line. The mid-point of its full-year EPS guidance also came in a tad short of forecasts.
Over the weekend, reports suggested that Coach could be eyeing a £1bn-plus swoop for UK luxury brand Jimmy Choo.
Dow Jones - Risers
Intel Corp. (INTC) $36.80 1.35%
Visa Inc. (V) $92.12 0.94%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $82.57 0.62%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $147.47 0.61%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $106.50 0.55%
3M Co. (MMM) $195.80 0.51%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $75.61 0.51%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $102.47 0.46%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $141.69 0.38%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $159.32 0.30%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $33.30 -1.42%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $86.07 -1.14%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $86.49 -0.69%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $223.47 -0.61%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $114.33 -0.35%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $120.84 -0.28%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $174.37 -0.13%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $123.18 -0.13%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $45.85 -0.05%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $69.41 0.00%
S&P 500 - Risers
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) $18.64 20.39%
Pitney Bowes Inc. (PBI) $15.47 15.20%
Coach Inc. (COH) $42.79 10.48%
Martin Marietta Mtrl (MLM) $239.94 7.83%
Cummins Inc. (CMI) $161.47 6.84%
Vulcan Materials Co. (VMC) $128.80 4.42%
Flowserve Corp. (FLS) $51.77 4.21%
Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $47.03 3.59%
FMC Technologies Inc. (FTI) $31.04 3.36%
EQT Corp. (EQT) $59.85 2.99%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. (ADM) $42.40 -6.96%
NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $15.56 -5.79%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $25.36 -5.32%
Emerson Electric Co. (EMR) $57.38 -5.09%
Borg Warner Inc. (BWA) $40.80 -4.65%
Ford Motor Co. (F) $10.99 -3.72%
AutoNation Inc. (AN) $40.10 -3.71%
TEGNA Inc (TGNA) $25.16 -2.48%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $104.25 -2.24%
Expeditors International Of Washington Inc. (EXPD) $54.78 -2.16%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Shire Plc Ads (SHPG) $181.59 2.90%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $67.87 2.55%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $246.90 2.15%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $42.87 1.88%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $36.92 1.67%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $48.27 1.54%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $26.51 1.16%
Hasbro Inc (HAS) $99.91 1.14%
Fastenal Co. (FAST) $44.99 1.03%
Ctrip.Com International Ltd. Ads (CTRP) $52.60 1.00%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $104.25 -2.24%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $27.73 -1.98%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $337.40 -1.96%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $95.92 -1.73%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $122.02 -1.60%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $118.70 -1.59%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $27.55 -1.54%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class C (DISCK) $26.80 -1.43%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $4.89 -1.41%
Liberty Interactive Corporation - Series A Liberty Ventures (LVNTA) $53.41 -1.28%