MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks Set To Catch Their Breath After Last Week's Blowout Gains

Spanish stocks rally as central government takes over

U.S. stocks on Monday showed signs that they could struggle to build on blowout gains seen late last week.

Monday's earnings calendar was light, with much of the big results set to come later in the week, along with key data such as nonfarm payrolls.

What are stock-index futures doing?

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures lost 23 points, or 0.1%, to 23,349, while those for the S&P 500 fell 4.4 points, or 0.2%, to 2,574. Meanwhile, Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 1 point to 6,214.50.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite , closed at records on Friday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/amazon-microsoft-alphabet-set-to-power-nasdaq-higher-after-blowout-results-2017-10-27), fueled by large gains in tech stocks after upbeat results from Amazon.com Inc.(AMZN) , Microsoft Corp.(MSFT) and others. The Dow on Friday added 33.33 points, or 0.1%, to end at 23,434.19, weighed by losses for Chevron Corp. (CVX) and Merck & Co.(MRK) .

What could drive the markets?

There are no major earnings on the calendar for Monday, but the rest of the week is busy. Among the highlights, Facebook Inc.(FB) and Tesla Inc.(TSLA) will report on Wednesday, followed by Apple Inc.(AAPL) , Starbucks Corp.(SBUX) and Dow DuPont Inc.(DWDP) on Thursday.

Read:Apple engineer reportedly fired over daughter's viral video of iPhone X (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/apple-engineer-reportedly-fired-over-daughters-viral-video-of-iphone-x-2017-10-29)

Read: Why stock-market bulls should be wary of rising tide of earnings shenanigans (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-stock-market-bulls-should-be-wary-of-rising-tide-of-earnings-shenanigans-2017-10-28)

The economic and political agenda is busy as well. A full week for data ends with the October jobs report on Friday. Ahead of that on Monday, personal income, consumer spending and core inflation for September are due at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.

The Federal Reserve meets Tuesday and Wednesday. No changes to monetary policy are expected, but the statement at the conclusion of the meeting will be closely watched for clues on whether policy makers intend to go ahead with a widely expected December increase in interest rates.

Read:Fed statement may have treats for the hawks and the doves (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/fed-statement-may-have-treats-for-both-hawks-and-doves-2017-10-27)

Investors will also be awaiting President Donald Trump's decision on who will lead the Fed after Chairwoman Janet Yellen's term expires in February. A report Friday said Trump is leaning toward choosing Fed Gov. Jerome Powell (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-leaning-toward-appointing-powell-to-fed-report-2017-10-27).

As well, any further developments on U.S. tax reforms will hold investor attention, with Republicans expected to unveil a much-awaited bill to overhaul the tax code on Wednesday. The National Association of Home Builders is set to offer opposition (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/house-republicans-tax-overhaul-bill-to-be-opposed-by-home-builder-trade-group-2017-10-29), specifically over changes in a mortgage-interest deduction.

Opinion:Trump-Ryan tax plan will encourage more corporate offshore tax avoidance (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/trump-ryan-tax-plan-will-encourage-more-corporate-offshore-tax-avoidance-2017-10-24)

Also on the political front, the first arrest (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/first-charges-filed-in-mueller-investigation-of-election-meddling-reports-2017-10-28) connected to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's criminal investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election could come as soon as Monday, sources told The Wall Street Journal.

What are analysts saying?

"The Republicans will release the much-expected tax plan, and [they] may or may not satisfy investors, [who] have been driving the U.S. stock markets higher since Trump's election nearly a year ago," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior market analyst at LCG.com, in a note to clients.

What are other markets doing?

The ICE Dollar Index was down 0.1% to 94.803, with slight losses against the .

And:Is the euro rally toast after ECB unveils dovish bond-buying cutback? (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/is-the-euro-rally-toast-after-ecb-unveils-dovish-bond-buying-reduction-2017-10-26)

Oil prices were rising, up 24 cents, or 0.5%, to $54.13 a barrel, while gold was marginally softer at $1,270.50 an ounce.

Stocks in Europe opened flat, but Spanish stocks rallied 1.5%. Spain's central government is taking control of Catalonia after removing the region's president Carles Puigdemont and calling for new elections on Dec. 21 (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/spain-seizes-power-as-tension-mounts-in-independence-bent-catalonia-2017-10-28). (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/spain-seizes-power-as-tension-mounts-in-independence-bent-catalonia-2017-10-28) Hundreds of thousands of pro-unity demonstrators rallied in Catalonia on Sunday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/hundreds-of-thousands-of-pro-unity-demonstrators-rally-in-catalonia-2017-10-29).

Stocks in Asia mostly fell (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-markets-rally-thanks-to-tech-stock-gains-2017-10-29), with Chines stocks dented in part by a bond sell-off.

Which stocks are in focus?

Akzo Nobel NV(AKZOY) and U.S. rival Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (AXTA) confirmed Monday they are in talks about a merger of equals that would create a multibillion-dollar coating and paints giant (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/akzo-nobel-axalta-confirm-merger-talks-2017-10-30).

Shares of Huntsman Corp.(HUN) could be in focus. Activist U.S. investors, who helped scuttle a proposed merger between Huntsman and Swiss chemicals company Clariant (CLN.EB) , said they will try to seek a seat on Clariant's board of directors and push for more changes (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/activist-investors-seek-clariant-board-seat-2017-10-30).

U.S.-listed shares of HSBC Holdings PLC(HSBA.LN) could be in focus after the bank said it swung to a third-quarter net profit of $3.24 billion (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/hsbc-holdings-swings-to-324-billion-profit-2017-10-30).

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 30, 2017 05:27 ET (09:27 GMT)