Stocks may move to the upside in early trading on Tuesday, extending the upward move that was seen last week. The major index futures are currently pointing to a notably higher open for the markets, with the Dow futures up by 79 points.
The upward momentum for the markets is partly due to the latest news out of Greece, with recent polls showing an increase in support for the political parties that back the austerity measures required to receive the international bailout.
While the polls suggest that the anti-bailout Syriza party would still come in second, the pro-bailout New Democracy party could win enough seats to form a coalition government with the socialist Pasok party. The elections are scheduled to be held June 17th.
Peter Boockvar, managing director at Miller Tabak, said, "Convincing the Greeks that he can renege on the budget agreements with the EU/IMF and still expect to get money from them and stay in the euro is becoming more difficult than Syriza party leader Tsipras had thought."
"His poll numbers are dropping compared to the New Democracy party who wants the euro and will mostly stick to the country's deal with the EU/IMF," Boockvar added.
Trading could also be impacted by the release of the Conference Board's report on U.S. consumer confidence in the month of May. The consumer confidence index is expected to edge up to 69.7 in May from 69.2 in April.
With traders getting a head start on the long weekend, stocks turned in another lackluster performance during trading on Friday. The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line after closing mixed in each of the three previous sessions.
The major averages eventually ended the day in the red, with the Dow underperforming its counterparts. The Dow fell 74.92 points or 0.6 percent to 12,454.83, while the Nasdaq edged down 1.85 points or 0.1 percent to 2,837.53 and the S&P 500 slipped 2.86 points or 0.2 percent to 1,317.82.
Despite the losses on the day, the major averages all moved higher for the week, bouncing off last Friday's four-month lows. The Dow rose by 0.7 percent, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 advanced by 2.1 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved to the upside during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged up by 1.4 percent.
The major European markets are also moving higher on the day. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has edged up by 0.3 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index are up by 0.6 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are climbing $0.23 to $91.09 after slipping $0.62 or 0.7 percent to $90.86 a barrel in the week ended May 24th. Gold futures, which fell $23 or 1.4 percent to $1,568.90 an ounce last week, are rising $5.30 to $1,576.50 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar extended its gains last week, adding 0.9 percent against the yen before settling the week at 79.69 yen. The greenback also jumped 2.1 percent versus the euro to $1.2517. The dollar is currently trading at 79.52 yen and is valued at $1.2533 versus the euro.
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