How are stock-index futures trading:
S&P 500 futures are down 0.5%.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are slipping 0.4%.
Nasdaq 100 futures are retreating 0.7%.
On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 228 points, or 0.55%, to 41563, the S&P 500 increased 56 points, or 1.01%, to 5648, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 197 points, or 1.13%, to 17714.
U.S. investors are returning from the long Labor Day weekend in cautious mood.
Friday saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average register its 26th record close of 2024, while the S&P 500 sits just just 0.3% below its peak.
But wariness over the valuations afforded some big technology stocks — Nvidia shares finished lower for the week despite forecast-beating earnings -leaves the Nasdaq Composite 5% off its closing high, and it is softness in this sector that is weighing on sentiment early Tuesday.
Traders are also timid ahead of a four-day data dump that climaxes on Friday with the U.S. jobs report. In addition, investors are aware that September tends not to be a very good period for stocks.
“Couple that with political and geopolitical uncertainty, and investors are likely in for a choppy month,” says Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“U.S. nonfarm payroll figures on Friday are the highlight of the week, which could have a meaningful impact on the size of the first Fed cut later this month,” Britzman adds.