|
 There is little in the way of corporate or economic news expected during the session. Instead, investors are looking toward Thursday's speech from Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke for clues about the central bank's intentions.
Further moves by the Fed at its Jan. 29-30 meeting can't come soon enough for some traders. Wall Street dropped sharply on Friday after a government report showed a jump in the unemployment rate and sluggish payroll growth.
In just the first three trading days of 2008, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 3.50 percent, the Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3.86 percent, and the Nasdaq composite index dropped 5.57 percent.
On Monday, Dow futures rose 55 points, or 0.48 percent, to 12,942.00. Broader indexes also indicated a higher open, with Standard & Poor's 500 index futures up 7.90, or 0.56 percent, at 1,430.80; and Nasdaq composite futures up 8.00, or 0.40 percent, at 1,993.00.
Bond prices were little changed in overnight trading Monday after a rally during the past week. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.88 percent from 3.87 percent late Friday.
Investors might get some relief Monday from falling crude prices. Oil dropped as energy traders reacted to the potential of a recession in the U.S. after last week's disappointing employment report. A barrel of light, sweet crude dropped 52 cents to $97.39 in pre-opening trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
[to top of second column] |
 More clues about the economy are expected from fourth-quarter earnings season. Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. on Tuesday will be the first of the 30 Dow Jones industrials to report results.
In corporate news, Time Warner Inc. could be in focus after the entertainment company announced it plans to release high-definition movies on Blu-ray rather than Toshiba Corp.'s HD DVD formal. Blu-ray is owned by Sony Corp.
The announcement comes as the Consumer Electronics Show kicks off in Las Vegas this week.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average closed down 1.30 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.23 percent, Germany's DAX index added 0.34 percent, and France's CAC-40 was up 0.41 percent.
___
On the Net:
New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com/
Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com/
[Associated Press; By JOE BEL BRUNO]
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed. |
