US pre-open: Futures mixed ahead of stimulus talks
US futures were pointing had stocks opening mixed ahead of the bell on Monday as market participants turned their attention towards Washington.
As of 1240 BST, Dow Jones and S&P 500 futures had the indices opening 0.10% and 0.14% softer, respectively, while Nasdaq-100 futures were up 0.24%.
The Dow closed 62.76 points lower on Friday as shares in Netflix and other tech giants weighed on the Street.
Investors had their attention focussed on Capitol Hill before the bell on Monday, with lawmakers set to begin negotiations on new stimulus measures to help the US economy through the Covid-19 downturn.
With Donald Trump's $600-a-week stimulus benefits for unemployed Americans set to expire later in the month, much uncertainty remains about the size and shape of the next bill, particularly on the consumer side.
In terms of coronavirus headlines, cases continued to rise at an alarming rate across the US, with more than 70,000 new confirmed cases in the country on Saturday, according to Johns Hopkins Data.
News that British pharmaceutical group Synairgen said its new respiratory treatment had reduced the number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients needing intensive care in a clinical trial was also in focus. However, word that Donald Trump was reportedly seeking to stop billions of dollars in track-and-trace funding, despite the US marking a 41st record-setting day of fresh cases, offset much of the optimism stemming from Synairgen's update.
Haliburton and Cal-Maine Foods will post earnings throughout the day.
No major data points were scheduled for release on Monday.