U.S. Stocks May Continue To Experience Choppy Trading

(RTTNews) - Following the lackluster performance seen in the previous session, stocks may continue to experience choppy trading early on Wednesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by less than a tenth of a percent.

Uncertainty about trade tensions between the U.S. and China may keep some traders on the sidelines following the latest remarks from President Donald Trump.

During a lunch with Republican lawmakers in the White House Rose Garden on Tuesday, Trump said he expects to be able to reach a "good deal" with Chinese President Xi Jinping but also suggested a meeting between the two leaders may not happen.

"Maybe it won't happen," Trump said. "Things can happen where, for instance, maybe somebody will say, 'I don't want to meet, it's too nasty.' But it's really not nasty. It's just business."

Trump also indicated he may not follow through with a planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the Russia-Ukraine war, saying he doesn't want to "have a waste of time."

Traders may also be reluctant to make significant moves amid another quiet day on the U.S. economic front ahead of the release of closely watched consumer price inflation data on Friday.

Early trading may be impacted by reaction to the latest earnings news, with shares of Netflix (NFLX) tumbling by 7.7 percent in pre-market trading after the streaming giant reported weaker than expected third quarter earnings.

Toy maker Mattel (MAT) is also likely to come under pressure after reporting third quarter results that missed analyst estimates.

On the other hand, shares of Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) are soaring by 18.4 percent in pre-market trading after the robotic-assisted surgery systems maker reported third quarter results that beat expectations.

Capital One (COF) is also likely to see initial strength after reporting third quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

After moving notably higher over the two previous sessions, stocks turned in a relatively lackluster performance during trading on Tuesday.

The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line, although the narrower Dow showed a more significant increase to reach a new record closing high.

The Dow pulled back well off its best levels of the day but still closed up 218.16 points or 0.5 percent to 46,924.74. The S&P 500 crept up 0.22 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 6,735.35, while the Nasdaq dipped 36.88 points or 0.2 percent to 22,953.67.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Wednesday. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slid by 0.9 percent and Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged slightly lower, while South Korea's Kospi surged by 1.6 percent.

The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.0 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.3 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are jumping $1.19 to $58.43 a barrel after rising $0.22 to $57.24 a barrel on Tuesday. Meanwhile, an ounce of gold is trading at $4,046.90, down $62.20 compared to the previous session's close of $4,109.10. On Tuesday, gold plummeted $250.30.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 151.79 yen compared to the 151.93 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Tuesday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1584 compared to yesterday's $1.1598.