By Investing.com– U.S. stock index futures steadied in evening deals on Monday following a positive session on Wall Street, with focus turning squarely to a barrage of major earnings and economic readings this week.
Wall Street was encouraged by hopes of easing tensions in the Middle East, after an attack by Israel against Iran was not as severe as markets were fearing. Positioning in technology stocks, before key earnings, also put the Nasdaq close to record highs.
S&P 500 Futures steadied at 5,860.75 points, while Nasdaq 100 Futures were flat at 20,498.75 points by 19:05 ET (23:05 GMT). Dow Jones Futures were flat at 42,594.0 points.
Alphabet to kick off big tech earnings this week
Five of Wall Street’s “Magnificent Seven” are due to report earnings this week, with Google owner Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) set to report after the market close on Tuesday.
This will be followed by Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) on Wednesday, while Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) will report on Thursday.
This week’s earnings are set to act as a bellwether for the broader market, given the relative market capitalization of the five tech giants. Investors will be watching to see whether Wall Street’s biggest firms were able to generate strong returns on their sizeable investments in artificial intelligence over the past year.
Wall St steadies with econ. data, election in focus
Wall Street indexes clocked mild gains on Monday, remaining in sight of record highs, although market volatility is set to increase in the coming days with a swathe of key economic readings, and the 2024 presidential election on tap.
The S&P 500 rose 0.3% to 5,823.52 points, while the NASDAQ Composite rose 0.3% to 18,568.05 points on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average outperformed, rising nearly 0.7% to 42,387.57 points.
A swathe of key economic readings are due this week, with gross domestic product data for the third quarter due on Thursday.
This will be followed by PCE price index data- the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge- as well as nonfarm payrolls data- both due on Friday.
The readings come just weeks before a Fed meeting, where the central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates by a smaller 25 basis points.
The U.S. presidential elections are also set to take place in the coming week, with voting set for November 5.
Republican nominee Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are set for a tight race, although recent polls and prediction markets showed Trump gaining some ground.