MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stock Futures Rise As Investors Brace For Earnings Season Kickoff

Nvidia on track to hit an all-time high

U.S. stock-index futures pointed to a slightly higher open on Tuesday, though the market's recent trend of slight moves and quiet trading was expected to persist as investors looked ahead to the upcoming start of earnings season, which will provide concrete insight into the state of U.S. corporations.

What are stock futures doing?

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 55 points, or 0.3%, to 22,767. S&P 500 futures added 4.70 points, or 0.1%, to 2,548.5. Nasdaq-100 futures gained 15.75 points, or 0.3%, to 6,080.

On Monday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-on-track-to-resume-their-record-busting-rise-2017-10-09), the Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped less than 0.1% to 22,761, though it hit an intraday record of 22,803.37 in early trading. The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% to 2,545. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.2% to 6,580, ending a nine-day rally.

Recent trading has had a pronounced upward bias. In addition to the Nasdaq's rally, the S&P 500 has ended higher in eight of the past ten sessions.

What could move the markets?

Investors will listen for hints to policy in comments from Federal Reserve speakers today, ahead of the release of Fed minutes on Wednesday. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari is scheduled to make welcoming remarks at his bank's conference on regional economic conditions at 10 a.m. Eastern Time. Later, Dallas Fed President Rob Kaplan will appear in a moderated discussion at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research in Stanford, Calif. at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Buying sentiment could be dampened by the wait for the start of the third-quarter earnings season. That kicks off in earnest on Wednesday with reports from BlackRock Inc.(BLK) and Delta Air Lines Inc.(DAL). J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.(JPM) and Citigroup Inc.(C) will report Thursday, followed by Bank of America Corp.(BAC) and Wells Fargo & Co.(WFC) on Friday.

Optimism over the season is running high, with multiple investment banks forecasting it to fuel gains over the fourth quarter of the year.

Read more:Third-quarter earnings seen as 'an easy beat,' could set up more stock market records (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/third-quarter-earnings-seen-as-an-easy-beat-could-set-up-more-stock-market-records-2017-10-09)

In the latest economic data, sentiment among small-business owners stumbled (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/small-business-sentiment-sours-as-policy-malaise-drags-on-2017-10-10)in September as expectations for sales and economic growth plunged.

The International Monetary Fund lifted its forecast for global growth but also warned of downside risks going forward (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/imf-lifts-global-forecast-but-warns-of-risks-2017-10-10). The IMF called on China to take more step to curb its credit growth, and for a "concentrated effort" to clean up the balance sheets of European banks.

Which stocks are in focus?

Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) shares inched up. At the annual general meeting on Tuesday, a proxy vote among shareholders will decide on whether Trian Fund Management LP's chief executive officer, Nelson Peltz, gets a seat on the company's board.

Nvidia Corp.(NVDA) rose after the graphics chip maker unveiled new hardware to be used in self-driving taxis (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/nvidias-stock-surges-toward-record-high-after-unveiling-of-new-self-driving-taxi-hardware-2017-10-10). The stock, which has nearly tripled over the past 12 months, was on track to hit an all-time high.

KalVista Pharmaceuticals Inc. (KALV) surged after Merck & Co. (MRK) bought a 9.9% ownership stake (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/kalvista-shares-halted-on-news-of-merck-ownership-stake-collaboration-2017-10-10) in the company, paying $8.50 a share. The stock closed Monday at $7.35.

Express Scripts(ESRX) said it would buy the privately held EviCore for $3.6 billion.

Walt Disney Co.(DIS) were modestly higher after the media and entertainment group released the latest trailer for "Star Wars: The Last Jedi." (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/disney-releases-second-trailer-for-star-wars-the-last-jedi-2017-10-09) The second film in the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy will be released Dec. 15.

At an investor meeting, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) said it was continuing its strategy of focusing on domestic existing stores (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wal-mart-reveals-financial-goals-e-commerce-focus-2017-10-10) and e-commerce growth to increase sales

Read:Carl's Jr. wants Amazon to buy it, and gives 24 reasons why (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/carls-jr-wants-amazon-to-buy-it-and-gives-24-reasons-why-2017-10-09)

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/carls-jr-wants-amazon-to-buy-it-and-gives-24-reasons-why-2017-10-09)What are other assets doing?

European stocks () were mostly lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/lvmh-shines-in-lackluster-european-trade-with-spanish-shares-losing-ground-2017-10-10), with Spain's IBEX benchmark slipping ahead of a key speech by Catalan President Carles Puigdemont. He's due to make an address to the region's parliament later in the day, in which some think he could declare independence for the region. Such a move could trigger the Spanish government to take control of the Catalan government (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/spain-and-investors-on-roller-coaster-ride-after-catalonias-referendum-chaos-2017-10-06), which may result in more unrest in the region.

Asian markets traded mostly higher (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/south-korea-stocks-surge-leading-asian-market-gains-2017-10-09).

Oil futures jumped higher and gold futures gained.

Read:OPEC urges U.S. shale to take 'shared responsibility' to cut oil output (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/opec-urges-us-shale-to-take-shared-responsibility-to-cut-oil-output-2017-10-10)

The ICE U.S. Dollar Index was down (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-loses-ground-as-euro-climbs-on-tapering-hopes-2017-10-10), as the dollar fell against the euro , the British pound and the yen .

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/turkish-lira-falls-against-dollar-as-spat-weighs-while-pound-stabilizes-2017-10-09)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 10, 2017 09:29 ET (13:29 GMT)