US pre-open: Quiet start expected ahead of festive break
US stock futures were pointing to small gains ahead of the opening bell on Tuesday with trading likely to be subdued as traders refrain from making any major moves before the festive holidays.
The Dow was inching 0.04% higher in pre-market trading, set for its fourth day in positive territory – albeit marginally – after its longest losing streak in half a century (10 days) came to an end last week.
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq meaning were rising 0.13% and 0.18% respectively, marking their third day in the black.
The New York Stock Exchange will close shop early at 1300 ET and reopen on Thursday for another half-day session, before resuming as normal on Friday.
With no major economic data or corporate earnings due for release, investors will likely still be digesting Monday's barrage of economic data, which showed that US durable-goods orders, new home sales and consumer confidence were all lower than expectations.
"This bag of bad news helped tempering the latest hawkish shift in Fed expectations. As such, the buyers are out and buying," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.
Last week, the Fed scaled back expectations for the number – and scale – of interest-rate reductions in 2025, with just two cuts now priced into markets compared with four previously.