Modupe Gbadeyanka
By Investors Hub
The major US index futures are pointing to a roughly flat opening on Wednesday following the July 4th holiday on Tuesday. Traders may stick to the sidelines ahead of the release of the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve Meeting this afternoon.
Stocks turned in a mixed performance on Monday, with the major averages closing on opposite sides of the unchanged line for the second straight session.
While the Nasdaq slid 30.36 points or 0.5 percent to 6,110.06, the Dow climbed 129.64 points or 0.6 percent to 21,479.27 and the S&P 500 rose 5.60 points or 0.2 percent to 2,429.01.
The mixed performance on Wall Street came following the release of a report from the Institute for Supply Management showing an acceleration in the rate of growth in the U.S. manufacturing sector.
The ISM said its purchasing managers index climbed to 57.8 in June from 54.9 in May, with a reading above 50 indicating growth in the manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 55.2.
“Comments from the panel generally reflect expanding business conditions; with new orders, production, employment, backlog and exports all growing in June compared to May,” said Timothy R. Fiore Chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.
Meanwhile, a separate report from the Commerce Department said construction spending was unchanged in May, as a drop in spending in private construction spending offset a jump in spending on public construction.
The report said construction spending was unchanged at an annual rate of $1.23 trillion in May after falling by 0.7 percent in April. Economists had expected spending to rise by 0.2 percent.
Trading activity was relatively subdued, however, with many traders away from their desks ahead of the July 4th holiday.
Energy, trucking and financial stocks saw significant strength, while considerable weakness was visible among gold, semiconductor and software stocks.
