After ending the previous session mostly higher, stocks could see some further upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a modestly higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 24 points.
The modest upward momentum for the markets may be partly due to comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who said the central bank has not ruled out the possibility of negative deposit rates and other non-standard policy measures.
Speaking at a farewell conference for Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer in Jerusalem, Draghi said, "We will look with an open mind at these measures that are especially effective in our institutional setup and that fall within our mandate."
He reiterated the warning that some of the non-standard measures could lead to unintended consequences but said this does not mean that they should not be used.
Nonetheless, trading activity may be somewhat subdued as the Federal Reserve begins its two-day monetary policy meeting.
While the Fed is not expected to announce an immediate change in policy when it releases its post-meeting statement on Wednesday, traders will be looking for any signals regarding when the central bank will scale back its stimulus program.
On Monday, the Financial Times' U.S. Economics Editor Robin Harding predicted that the Federal Reserve will signal plans to taper its asset purchase program, triggering a notable pullback by stocks.
In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a significant rebound in housing starts in the month of May, although starts still came in well below economist estimates.
The report said housing starts climbed 6.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 914,000 in May from the revised April estimate of 856,000. However, economists had been expecting housing starts to surge up to an annual rate of 955,000 compared to the 853,000 originally reported for April.
A separate report from the Labor Department showed a modest increase in consumer prices in the month of May, with the slight increase largely reflecting higher shelter costs.
While lingering worries about the outlook for the Fed's stimulus program generated some selling pressure in afternoon trading on Monday, stocks managed to end the day mostly higher after seeing an early rally on the heels of some upbeat economic data.
The major averages finished the session well off their best levels of the day but still posted strong gains. The Dow jumped 109.67 points or 0.7 percent to 15,179.85, the Nasdaq advanced 28.58 points or 0.8 percent to 3,452.13 and the S&P 500 climbed 12.31 points or 0.8 percent to 1,639.04.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down by 0.2 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index inched up by 0.1 percent.
The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.1 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.8 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.33 to $98.10 a barrel after edging down $0.08 to $97.77 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, gold futures are sliding $8.60 to $1,374.50 an ounce. In the previous session, the precious metal slipped $4.50 to $1,383.10 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 95.68 yen compared to the 94.51 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.3348 compared to yesterday's $1.3367.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.