The major U.S. Index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Monday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction after moving mostly higher last Friday but still posted notable losses for the week.The futures had been pointing to initial weakness on Wall Street but regained ground after a report from CNBC regarding the Treasury Department’s recently announced plans to upscale buyback operations for longer-term debt.Citing two senior Treasury officials, CNBC said the Treasury could use its nearly $1 trillion General Account to help fund its plans to double the size of buybacks.Treasury yields have moved to the downside in reaction to the report, with the ten-year yield slumping after moving notably higher over the two previous sessions amid concerns about U.S. government debt.However, traders may be reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of key events later this week, including Nvidia’s (NVDA) quarterly earnings and the Jackson Hole economic symposium.“[Fed Chair Kevin] Warsh is scheduled to deliver keynote remarks on Friday, and markets will be looking for greater clarity on both his assessment of inflation and the broader "regime change" he has advocated at the Fed,” said Daniela Hathorn, Senior Market Analyst at Capital.com.She added, “He has been reluctant to provide conventional forward guidance, meaning the speech may focus more heavily on the Fed's reaction function and longer-term philosophy than explicitly signaling what policymakers will do in September.”A lack of major U.S. economic data may also keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of closely watched readings on consumer price inflation on Wednesday.Following the sell-off seen during Thursday’s session, stocks moved back to the upside during trading on Friday. The major averages all moved notably higher on the day, with the Dow showing a notable advance.The major averages all ended the day in positive territory. The Dow jumped 517.80 points or 1 percent to 53,277.01, the Nasdaq climbed 113.29 points or 0.4 percent to 26,180.45 and the S&P 500 rose 33.21 points or 0.4 percent at 7,674.37.Despite the rebound on the day, the major averages all closed notably lower for the week. The Nasdaq plunged by 2.1 percent, the S&P 500 tumbled by1.4 percent and the Dow slumped by 0.9 percent.The strength on Wall Street may partly have reflected bargain hunting, with traders picking up stocks at relatively reduced levels following Thursday’s weakness.The major averages all moved sharply lower during trading on Thursday amid an extended surge in crude oil prices and a rebound in bond yields.Buying interest appeared somewhat subdued, however, as crude oil prices have fluctuated over the course of the session but have largely held on to recent gains.U.S. crude oil futures are little changed on the day but have surged by more than 6 percent for the week amid lingering concerns about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.The Trump administration's plan to shift toward crushing economic measures against Iran versus further major U.S. military operations has led to worries that crisis could drag on.Traders may also have been reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of key events next week, including the release of Nvidia's (NVDA) quarterly results and the Jackson Hole economic symposium."Next week's results from Nvidia could put some of the focus back on corporate earnings but, as we head towards the autumn, a chill has started to descend for markets," said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell.He added, "Investors will be looking for a comfort blanket when Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh addresses the Jackson Hole meeting at the end of this month."Brokerage stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Broker/Dealer Index up by 3.7 percent to a record closing high.A sharp increase by the price of gold also contributed to significant strength among gold stocks, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging by 2.5 percent to its highest closing level in four months.Airline, healthcare and pharmaceutical stocks also saw considerable strength, while utilities showed a notable move to the downside.Commodity, Currency MarketsCrude oil futures are tumbling $1.63 to $85.42 a barrel after rising $0.23 to $87.06 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after soaring $109.20 to $4,680.60 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $38.80 to $4,719.40 an ounce.On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 158.90 yen versus the 158.93 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1671 compared to last Friday’s $1.1679.AsiaAsian stocks ended Monday's session mostly lower as investors awaited earnings from chip giant Nvidia along with the release of key U.S. inflation data and Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's Jackson Hole speech for direction.Traders also awaited details of what Washington has billed as its toughest-ever sanctions campaign against Iran and its trading partners.Gold prices were up 0.9 percent at $4,644 an ounce in Asian trading hitting their highest level in more than three months as a subdued dollar lent support.Brent crude futures fell nearly 2 percent to trade below $93 a barrel after rising over 5 percent to post their second consecutive weekly gain last week amid the impasse in talks over a deal to end the U.S.-Iran war.China's Shanghai Composite Index closed down 0.6 percent at 3,882.01. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 1.9 percent to 25,517.33.Alibaba Group Holding nosedived 8.5 percent after the Chinese e-commerce and cloud computing firm raised HK$80 billion ($10.2 billion) in Hong Kong's biggest secondary share sale to fund its AI push.Japanese markets fell notably as AI stocks slipped on concerns over rising costs. Bloomberg News reported over the weekend that Nvidia is moving to raise prices across its AI server ecosystem amid a surge in memory chip prices.Expectations of a Bank of Japan rate hike at its September policy meeting also kept investors on edge. The Nikkei 225 Index slid 0.7 percent to 65,528.09, while the broader Topix Index settled 0.2 percent higher at 4,073.29.SoftBank Group shares slumped 5.3 percent after the technology investor filed for the issuance of 1 trillion yen of unsecured straight corporate bond, with final details of the bond issuance expected to be announced on September 4.Seoul stocks tumbled due to disappointment over Samsung Electronics' shareholder return plan. The Kospi Index plunged 3.1 percent to 6,696.96.Shares of Samsung Electronics dove 8.7 after the company announced a record $79 billion shareholder return plan but failed to provide details on a possible stock buyback. Industry rival SK Hynix gave up 3.4 percent.Australian markets ended higher to reverse losses from the previous session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.5 percent to 9,103.10 as firmer iron ore prices boosted mining stocks.BHP Billiton surged 3 percent and Rio Tinto added 1.2 percent. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.51 percent higher at 9,316.70.Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index dropped 0.7 percent to 13,881.88 after data showed retail sales volumes in the country fell 0.5 percent quarter-on-quarter in the second quarter of 2026. The kiwi dollar eased as markets priced in potential RBNZ rate cuts.EuropeEuropean stocks are little changed in directionless trading on Monday as investors await details of what Washington has billed as its toughest-ever sanctions campaign against Iran and its trading partners.Upcoming earnings from chip giant Nvidia, U.S. inflation data and Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's Jackson Hole speech also remain on investors' radar.While the French CAC 40 Index is down by 0.2 percent, the German DAX Index is just above the unchanged line and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.1 percent.Pharmaceutical giant GSK was modestly higher in London after receiving first global approval for its experimental chronic hepatitis B drug in Japan.French lender BNP Paribas was moving lower after announcing it would push ahead with an appeal in the Sudan litigation.Swedish construction company Skanska has risen after bagging a contract from CRA Prague Gateway DC to build a new data center on the outskirts of Prague, Czechia.U.S. Economic NewsNo major U.S. economic data is scheduled to be released today.