U.S. Stocks May Lack Direction As Key Economic Data Looms

(RTTNews) - Stocks saw a significant advance during last Friday's session but are likely to show a lack of direction in early trading on Monday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by less than a tenth of a percent.

Traders may take a step back to assess the recent volatility in the markets, which saw a tech-led swoon in the middle of last week before the notable rebound seen on Friday.

A lack of major U.S. economic data may also keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of several key reports in the coming days.

The Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report, which was delayed due to the brief government shutdown last week, is likely to be in the spotlight.

The report is expected to show employment climbed by 70,000 jobs in January after rising by 50,000 jobs in December, while the unemployment rate is expected to hold at 4.4 percent.

Reports on retail sales and consumer price inflation are also likely to attract attention, as the data could impact the outlook for interest rates.

After moving sharply lower over the past few sessions, stocks showed a substantial move back to the upside during trading on Friday. The major averages all showed substantial upward moves, with the Dow closing above 50,000 for the first time.

The major averages reached new highs late in the session before giving back some ground going into the end of the day. The Dow soared 1,206.95 points or 2.5 percent to 50,115.67, the Nasdaq surged 490.63 points or 2.2 percent to 23,031.21 and the S&P 500 jumped 133.90 points or 2.0 percent to 6,932.30.

For the week, the Dow shot up by 2.5 percent, while the S&P 500 edged down by 0.1 percent and the Nasdaq slumped by 1.8 percent.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved sharply higher during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged by 3.9 percent, while South Korea's Kospi spiked by 4.1 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets are turning in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.1 percent and the German DAX Index is up by 0.5 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are edging down $0.03 to $63.52 a barrel after rising $0.26 to $63.55 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after jumping $90.30 to $4,979.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $50.40 to $5,030.20 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 156.10 yen versus the 157.20 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1895 compared to last Friday's $1.1816.