U.S. Stocks May Lack Direction Ahead Of U.S.-Iran Negotiations

(RTTNews) - After recovering from an early pullback to end the previous session mostly higher, stocks may lack direction in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by just 0.1 percent.

Traders may be reluctant to make significant moves amid lingering uncertainty about the ceasefire in the Middle East.

Ahead of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan over the weekend, President Donald Trump said Iran is doing a "very poor job" of allowing oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz, adding, "That is not the agreement we have!"

Trump also responded to reports indicating Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the vital waterway, saying, "They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!"

"With talks between Tehran and Washington set to get underway on Saturday, investors could be in for a fretful weekend as they wait for indications of whether a path to lasting peace is possible," said AJ Bell's head of markets Dan Coatsworth. "Ahead of this, investors may well be tempted to hedge their bets."

The futures remained little changed after the Labor Department released a report showing consumer prices in the U.S. increased in line with economist estimates in the month of March.

The Labor Department said its consumer price index jumped by 0.9 percent in March after rising by 0.3 percent in February. Economists had expected consumer prices to advance by 0.9 percent.

Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices rose by 0.2 in March, matching the uptick seen in February. Core prices were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.

The report said the annual rate of growth by consumer prices accelerated to 3.3 percent in March from 2.4 in February, while the annual rate of growth by core consumer prices ticked up to 2.6 percent in March from 2.5 percent in February.

Not long after the start of trading, the University of Michigan is scheduled to release its preliminary reading on consumer sentiment in the month of April. The consumer sentiment index is expected to dip to 52.0 in April after falling to 53.3 in March.

Following the substantial rally seen during Wednesday's session, stocks gave back ground in early trading on Thursday but showed a notable turnaround over the course of the day. The major averages climbed well off their lows of the session and into positive territory.

The major averages added to the strong gains posted Wednesday, reaching their best closing levels in over a month.

The Nasdaq advanced 187.42 points or 0.8 percent to 22,822.42, the Dow climbed 275.88 points or 0.6 percent to 48,185.80 and the S&P 500 rose 41.85 points or 0.6 percent to 6,824.66.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index jumped by 1.8 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index increased by 0.5 percent.

The major European markets have also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 0.8 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.7 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.3 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.32 to $97.55 a barrel after surging $3.46 to $97.87 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after climbing $40.80 to $4,818 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are sliding $32 to $4,786 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 159.05 yen versus the 158.94 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.1721 compared to yesterday's $1.1699.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.