Us stock futures held steady overnight on Sunday as investors prepared for the last trading day of August.
Dow futures rose only 4 points. Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures have barely changed, NASDAQ100 index futures are traded near the level.
The stock market is likely to remain in a range until Friday's August jobs report. Accept Dow JonesEconomists surveyed expect 750000 jobs to be created in August and the unemployment rate to fall to 5.2 per cent.
Monday and Tuesday are the last two trading days in August. So far, the s & p 500 is up 2.6% in august. The Dow Jones industrial average and the Nasdaq composite index are up 1.5% and 3.1% respectively this month.
The S & P 500 and the Nasdaq composite index closed at all-time highs on Friday as investors breathed a sigh of relief after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted that bond size might start to shrink this year, but the central bank was in no hurry to raise interest rates.
Powell said inflation was stable near the central bank's target rate of 2%, which is one of the Fed's dual goals, but the Fed chairman also explained why he continues to believe that the current rise in inflation is temporary and will eventually fall to the target level.
According to statements from other Fed officials, the Fed is likely to announce downsizing at its meeting on Sept. 21-22. Mr Powell said the central bank had "a lot of work to do" to achieve another goal of maximising employment.
With the Fed's Jackson Hole meeting, investors are now focusing on stock movements in the final months of the year.
Oil futures rose slightly as the commodity proved to have little response to Hurricane Ida. WTI crude oil futures rose 0.8 per cent.