Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. NYSEU.USA Stock futures were little changed Sunday night after the S&P 500 rose for a third straight week, although it ended Friday lower. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 11 points, or 0.02%. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively. Asia-Pacific markets were set for a mixed opening on Monday. Chicago and Japan’s Osaka Nikkei 225 futures contracts were higher than the index’s previous close of 68,713.8. Hong Kong Hang Seng Index futures also traded above the benchmark’s close of 25,116.85. In Australia, futures for the S&P/ASX 200 traded at 9,015 compared to the index’s last close of 9,115.2. South Korean markets are closed for the holiday. Wall Street is coming off three consecutive weeks of gains for the S&P 500, which again hit new all-time highs last week. after a successful earnings season that has boosted investor confidence. The stock market has continued to rise amid ongoing hostilities in the Middle East as well as concerns around artificial intelligence trading. “Investors appear increasingly comfortable with the current environment, leaving bears with fewer and fewer narratives to parse,” Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide, wrote on Friday. “The more tests the bulls undergo, the more emboldened they are to drive stock markets higher.” Investors face a week with fewer catalysts on the calendar, although the Federal Reserve releases its latest meeting minutes on Wednesday. A slew of retail earnings are also expected, with Walmart results due Thursday. Home Depot and Lowe’s report Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. On the economic front, investors will be keeping an eye on the August Empire State Manufacturing Index as well as the August NAHB Housing Market Index.
