Stock futures were flat in overnight trading on Tuesday as investors await more guidance from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on the central bank’s tightening stance.
Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell just 15 points. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures were both little changed.
Both the Dow and the S&P 500 fell for the third straight session Tuesday amid relatively light trading volumes. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite ended Tuesday little changed. The S&P 500 is roughly flat for the month after rising more than 9% in July.
The three-day Jackson Hole Economic Symposium begins Thursday, and Powell is expected to speak Friday morning. Fed watchers expect him to reiterate the central bank’s goal of containing inflation and keeping expectations of future gains in check.
“Financial markets will remain in choppy waters ahead of Fed Chair Powell’s Jackson Hole speech on Friday,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda. “He may have trouble convincing markets that he is comfortable tightening monetary policy and triggering a recession. The economy is clearly slowing, but it’s too early for the Fed to signal that it will be less aggressive with policy tightening.”
Investors will also monitor the incoming data to gauge the health of the economy. Durables and pending home sales are on deck Wednesday.
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