Wall Street ticked modestly lower early Monday ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s meeting later Monday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders.
Futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq were all 0.1% lower before the bell.
Markets showed scant reaction to Trump’s inconclusive summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday. Investors are also watching for cues from an annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, of top central bankers later this week.
In premarket trading, Soho House jumped 16% after the global membership-based club said it was being taken private by hotel operator MCR. Executive Chairman Ron Burkle and other big shareholders will retain their equity interests and control of the business.
Dayforce, a human resources software company, climbed more than 28% before the bell on media reports that it is being acquired by Chicago-based private equity firm Thoma Bravo. Bloomberg reported that Thoma Bravo was offering $9 billion, including debt, to take Dayforce private.
Some of the biggest U.S. retailers will report their latest financial results throughout the week, including Home Depot, Target and Walmart.
Trump’s meeting with Zelenskyy will include other European leaders who were not included in the president’s talks in Anchorage, Alaska, with Putin. The European allies are seeking to present a united front in safeguarding Ukraine and the continent from any widening aggression from Moscow.
An annual meeting in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, of top central bankers later this week will be watched closely for hints about possible interest rate cuts from Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. He is due to speak Friday at the conference.
“While the official theme is labor markets, investors will scrutinize any hint of September policy direction, especially after last week’s mixed inflation data,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote said in a commentary, adding that “any progress on Ukraine peace talks could push global equities higher still.”
Expectations have been building that the Fed will cut interest rates at its next meeting in September, though mixed reports on the U.S. economy have undercut those bets somewhat.
At midday in Europe, Germany's DAX lost 0.3%, while the CAC 40 in Paris dropped 0.7%. Britain's FTSE 100 was flat.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 picked up 0.8%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gave up early gains, losing 0.4%.
The Shanghai Composite index jumped 1%. It's trading near it's highest level in a decade.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.2%.
The Kospi in South Korea declined 1.5% on heavy selling of semiconductor makers like Samsung Electronics, whose shares fell 2.2%. SK Hynix lost 3.3% as investors fretted over the possibility of more U.S. tariffs on computer chips.
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