By Victor Reklaitis and Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stock futures pointed to a
slightly higher open Tuesday for Wall Street, but had trimmed some
gains after a mixed report on durable-goods orders.
Investors also readied for potentially more investment signals
from upcoming data on home prices and consumer confidence. In
addition, they will be looking to see if the S&P 500 can score
its first close above 2,000, after the index on Monday notched a
new intraday high above that milestone and then closed just shy of
it.
Futures for the S&P 500 (SPU4) rose 2 points, or 0.1%, to
1,996.90, while those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJU4)
gained 20 points, or 0.1%, to 17,076. Futures for the Nasdaq 100
(NDU4) added 6.25 points, or nearly 0.2%, to 4,069.75.
Data ahead: Orders for U.S. durable goods skyrocketed a record
22.6% in July because of a surge in contracts for Boeing Co. (BA)
aircraft, but bookings actually fell for most other industries, the
Commerce Department reported Tuesday.
Investors will also get a fresh look at house prices via
separate June reports via an S&P/Case-Shiller index, due at 9
a.m. Then an August reading on consumer confidence comes at 10 a.m.
from the Conference Board. Read a preview of all the data
While disappointment over durable goods could hit stocks, "it is
going to be any change in the geopolitical landscape that has the
potential to cause the most volatility," said Joao Monteiro,
analyst at Valutrades, in a note before the data on big-ticket
goods. See: Peace-talk hopes diminished for Russia/Ukraine and U.S.
military preps for surveillance flights over Syria.
More on S&P 500 and 2,000: The S&P 500 index (SPX)
notched an intraday record at 2,001.95 on Monday but finished up
0.5% at 1,997.92. Plenty of people are asking where it goes from
here. Read: The S&P 500 topped 2,000. Should you care?
Bill McNamara, technical analyst at Charles Stanley, said the
S&P 500 continues to be supported by its long-term uptrend and
200-day moving average, with "little in the technical picture to
suggest that this situation is about to change."
"In fact, although the index is starting to look somewhat
overbought -- its 14-day MA (moving average) has pushed up to 65%
-- its recent surge in upside momentum looks set to continue and
further all-time highs (and a close above 2,000) cannot be too far
away," he said in a note on Tuesday.
Movers and shakers: Burger King Worldwide Inc. (BKW) and
Canada-based Tim Hortons Inc. (THI) confirmed Tuesday that they
plan to combine to create a new company in an $11 billion deal.
They are getting financing help from Warren Buffett's Berkshire
Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A).
Best Buy Co. (BBY) shares fell 3% in premarket trade amid a
sluggish outlook.
Shares of Kite Pharma Inc.(KITE) rose 17% in thin premarket
action after the biotech reported the majority of patients
responded positively to its cancer-drug candidate.
Follow more of the day's notable stock moves here.
Other markets: The Stoxx Europe 600 rose, while the FTSE 100
came back from a U.K. holiday to play catch-up with gains it missed
out on Monday. Asian stocks were mixed. Gold(GCV4) found some
renewed strength as the dollar (DXY) eased.
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