US stocks point to a mixed open amid China slowdown worries

U.S. stocks were mixed Monday morning investors pause for breath following a record-setting performance on Wall Street last week and monitor Chinese economic data.

At around 2 a.m. ET, Dow futures were up 31 points but indicated a positive open of around 17 points. The S&P 500 pointed to a slightly higher implied open while the Nasdaq was seen marginally lower.

Major indexes surged the new highs last week after U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell indicated during Congressional testimony that an interest rate cut could be on the horizon from the central bank. The Dow closed above 27,000 for the first time on Thursday and Friday’s gain brought its increase on the week to 1.5%.

Investors stateside will have an eye on developments in the U.S.-China trade war after Reuters reported on Sunday that the U.S. may approve licenses for companies to restart new sales to Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei within two weeks. The Wall Street Journal reported that Huawei is planning extensive layoffs in the U.S. amid the struggle with its blacklisting.

Meanwhile, China’s economic growth slowed to 6.2% in the second-quarter from a year earlier, its weakest pace in at least 27 years, as the trade war took its toll.

American big tech received a potential blow over the weekend after a Reuters report indicated that the Democratic-led House Financial Services Committee had circulated a proposal to bar tech giants from functioning as financial services institutions, or issuing digital currencies.

Markets will also be monitoring geopolitical developments after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tehran is ready to hold talks with the U.S. if Washington lifts sanctions and returns to the 2015 nuclear deal it exited last year.

The Empire State manufacturing survey is due for publication at 8.30 a.m. ET, while Citigroup is set to report earnings before the bell.

Source: CNBC