Wall Street set to start new quarter on subdued note

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[October 03, 2016]  By Yashaswini Swamynathan

(Reuters) - Wall Street was set to start the fourth quarter on a subdued note as oil prices pared gains, while investors looked forward to economic data that could provide further clues on the health of the economy.

 

The Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) from the Institute of Supply Management is expected to show that factory activity expanded in September after having contracted in August.

Oil prices were trading above $50, but came off session highs as investors assessed the impact of an OPEC deal to curb output. [O/R]

Investors are also on the lookout for news from Deutsche Bank, which is working to reach a settlement with U.S. authorities who have demanded a fine of up to $14 billion from the bank for mis-selling mortgage-backed securities.

While the bank's Frankfurt-listed stock <DBKGn.DE> was not trading due to a public holiday, its U.S.-listed shares <DB.N> were down 0.92 percent at $12.98 in premarket trading on Monday.

Wall Street rallied on Friday as a surge in Deutsche Bank lifted financial stocks after French news agency AFP reported that the bank was nearing a $5.4 billion settlement agreement with U.S. officials.

The travails of Germany's biggest lender has unsettled investors who are now awaiting third-quarter corporate earnings and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.

"It looks like a quiet start to the day and that's not surprising," said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at Wunderlich Equity Capital Markets in New York.

"It's a back-end loaded week with jobs numbers on Friday, but if we get a positive read on ISM manufacturing, we could say that August was a blip and that will be constructive for the markets today."

A report on monthly hiring activity on Friday will be assessed by investors as it will play a big role in the Federal Reserve's decision on raising interest rates this year.

Dow e-minis <1YMc1> were up 3 points, or 0.02 percent at 8:28 a.m. ET, with 12,911 contracts changing hands.

S&P 500 e-minis <ESc1> were down 3.25 points, or 0.15 percent, with 96,772 contracts traded.

Nasdaq 100 e-minis <NQc1> were down 5.5 points, or 0.11 percent, on volume of 13,657 contracts.

Automakers would be in focus on Monday as they report monthly sales numbers. Analysts predict U.S. auto sales to have edged up to 17.30 million in September from 16.98 million in August.

Tesla shares <TSLA.O> rose 3.7 percent to $211.60 after the electric carmaker said third-quarter deliveries rose by 70 percent to 24,500 cars.

Ebay <EBAY.O> fell 2.74 percent after Facebook <FB.O> launched a rival platform where users can buy and sell items. Facebook's shares were little changed.

Cabela's <CAB.N> surged 16.3 percent to $63.90 after the company said it would be acquired by Bass Pro Shops in a deal valued at about $5.5 billion.

(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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