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U.S. equity futures were mixed in early trading, while the dollar tested the highest levels in two years, as investors treaded cautiously into the final holiday-shortened trading days of the year.
Markets are scheduled to close at 1:00 pm Eastern time today, and will remain closed on Wednesday, as part of the traditional Christmas observances on Wall Street.
Stocks ended firmly higher on Monday, with the S&P 500 rising 0.73%, as the broadest benchmark of bluechip shares was powered by solid advances in megacap tech stocks that offset a selloff on Treasury bonds.
Wall Street hasn’t yet banished the Grinch from its holiday plans, but the end-of-year Santa Claus rally got off to a fine start on Monday.
Benchmark 10-year notes yields briefly touched 4.6% in Monday trading, and were last marked at 4.597% heading into the start of the New York trading session, even after a solid auction of $69 billion in 2-year notes that drew hefty participation from foreign investors.
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The higher Treasury yields, which pegged 2-year notes at 4.343% in overnight trading, pushed the U.S. dollar index 0.17% higher to 108.174 against a basket of its global peers, near the highest levels since late 2022.
Stocks are likely to remain muted throughout today’s short session, however, as premarket volumes are light and a large swath of European markets are closed outright for the region’s traditional Christmas Eve celebrations.
On Wall Street, futures contracts tied to the S&P 500 suggest a modest 5 point opening bell gain, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average called 7 points lower. The Nasdaq, meanwhile, is priced for a 34 point gain.
United States Steel (X) shares were a notable early mover, falling 3.4% in premarket after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States failed to reach an agreement on the group’s proposed takeover by Nippon Steel of Japan, leaving the ultimate decision to President Joe Biden.
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In Europe, the regional Stoxx 600 benchmark rose 0.42% in Frankfurt while Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.53% in thin London trading.
Overnight in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.32% in Tokyo while the MSCI ex-Japan benchmark edged 0.35% higher into the close of trading.
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