By Peter Nurse
Investing.com -- U.S. stocks are seen opening higher Tuesday, starting the new year on a strong note ahead of the release of this week’s key economic data.
At 07:00 ET (12:00 GMT), the Dow Futures contract was up 125 points, or 0.4%, S&P 500 Futures traded 15 points, or 0.4% higher, and Nasdaq 100 Futures climbed 55 points, or 0.5%.
The three major averages closed last year with their worst annual performance since 2008, snapping a three-year winning streak, as investors fretted that the Federal Reserve’s aggressive monetary tightening to combat inflation at 40-year highs would lead to a recession in 2023.
However, the new year is set to start on a more positive note, helped by gains in Europe after preliminary data from some of Germany’s largest states indicated that the country’s headline inflation is set to fall further in December.
The U.S. economic data calendar is quiet Tuesday, with just December U.S. manufacturing PMI and November construction spending due, but the minutes of the Fed’s latest policy meeting on Wednesday and Friday’s December jobs report will generate much more attention.
In the corporate sector, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) is likely to be in the spotlight after the electric car manufacturer on Monday reported record production and deliveries for the fourth quarter, but still missed Wall Street estimates.
Oil prices fell Tuesday, weighed by weak factory activity data from China, the world's largest crude importer and second-largest oil consumer, as surging COVID-19 infections disrupted production.
Additionally, International Monetary Fund managing director Kristalina Georgieva warned on Monday that 2023 will be a tough year for the world economy as the U.S., China, and Europe all deal with weakening economic output.
That said, trading is likely to be volatile as the longer-run prospects for China, the world's second-largest economy, will look more positive when the worst of the COVID waves have passed.
By 07:00 ET, U.S. crude futures traded 1.4% lower at $79.12 a barrel, while the Brent contract fell 1.4% to $84.68.
Additionally, gold futures rose 0.7% to $1,838.65/oz, while EUR/USD traded 1.2% lower at 1.0532.