US open: Stocks largely unchanged after Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales

US equities were largely unchanged early on Monday, as investors analysed figures from Black Friday ahead of an important week on the macroeconomic front.

Shortly after 1500 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up three points to 17,801.70, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were one point lower and eight points higher respectively.

“The US is going to dictate the overall direction of trading this week, especially with an incredibly important non-farm Friday on the cards,” said Spreadex’s financial analyst Connor Campbell.

Following a shortened week which culminated in the Thanksgiving celebrations, on Thursday Wall Street will closely monitor a policy meeting at the European Central Bank and a speech by Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen.

Meanwhile, on Friday, investors will analyse the latest job report ahead of the Fed’s December policy meeting, while OPEC’s two-day meeting in Vienna also concludes on Friday.

US pending home sales rose for the first time in two months in October, gaining 0.2% month-on-month from an upwardly revised 1.6% decline in September, although they fell short of analysts’ expectations for a 1% increase.

On a year-on-year basis, pending home sales rose 2.1% compared with an upwardly revised 3.2% gain in September and analysts’ expectations for a 4.5% advance.

Meanwhile, the Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Index, which measures business conditions across Illinois, Indiana and Michigan, declined from 56.2 last month to 48.7 in November, falling short of analysts’ expectations for a 54 reading.

"While the negative reading in November suggests sluggish Chicago-area activity, we do not see this morning’s print as necessarily indicative of a national slowdown," said analysts at Barclays.

In company news, retailers were in focus as investors assessed their performances over the holiday weekend of sales.

eBay gained 0.38% after research found it was the best place to shop for apparel, accessories and consumer packaged goods during the so-called "Cyber week".

Fitbit rose 3.23% after analysts at Barclays upgraded their rating on the provider of health and fitness product to overweight, while Microsoft after analysts at Raymond James lifted their rating on the stock citing strong cloud potential.

Lululemon Athletica slumped 5.68% after it was downgraded from ‘perform’ to ‘underperform’ by analysts at FBR & Co.

Elsewhere, Asian stocks began the week on a mixed note, as the rebound in Chinese stocks was halted by the ongoing investigation into a number of brokerages, while European stocks edged higher.

The dollar was broadly flat against the pound and rose 0.23% and 0.13% against the yen and the euro respectively, while gold spot gained 0.46% to $1,062.29.

Oil prices advanced, with West Texas Intermediate gaining 1.79% to $42.47 a barrel, while Brent crude rose 1.43% to $45.51 a barrel.