Dow futures largely flat; caution ahead of tech earnings and Fed policy decision By Investing.com

Investing.com — U.S. stock futures traded around the flatline Monday, at the start of a busy week that includes a Federal Reserve policy-setting meeting, key labor market data as well as earnings from several mega-cap tech companies.

By 06:30 ET (11:30 GMT), the contract was down 14 points, or 0.1%, traded 2 points, or 0.1%, higher and climbed 35 points, or 0.2%.

The main U.S. averages posted gains last week, for the second consecutive week, helped by stronger than expected growth data as well as signs inflationary pressures were easing. That said, disappointing quarterly results from tech giants Intel (NASDAQ:) and Tesla (NASDAQ:) limited the upside.

Fed meeting looms large

The main focus this week will be the two-day policy-setting meeting by the , concluding on Wednesday.

Fed officials are widely expected to keep interest rates on hold at more than two-decade highs, placing the accompanying press conference by Fed chief firmly in the spotlight as investors seek clues about the outlook for borrowing costs in the near term.

In December, the Fed signaled that it could reduce rates six times this year, fueling hopes for a cut as early as March this year. But central bank officials have generally moved to temper these expectations since then, and money markets currently price a first full quarter-point rate cut by May.

Investors will also look at the week’s busy economic data calendar for further guidance about future monetary policy.

The widely-watched monthly report is scheduled for Friday, and ahead of that comes and on Tuesday, followed a day later by a report on and weekly data on on Thursday.

Deluge of quarterly earnings

This week marks the busiest week of the earnings season, with 19% of the S&P 500 reporting earnings, including five of the “Magnificent Seven” tech stocks that have powered the markets higher for much of the last year.

Alphabet (NASDAQ:) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:) are due to report results on Tuesday, followed by Apple (NASDAQ:) and Amazon (NASDAQ:) on Thursday, with Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:) closing out the week on Friday.

Investors will also keep an eye on several Dow components reporting their quarterly earnings, including Boeing (NYSE:) and Merck (NYSE:).

Crude rises on increased Middle East tensions

Oil prices rose Monday on increased worries of disruptions to supply in the Middle East following a drone attack on U.S. forces in Jordan over the weekend.

By 06:30 ET, the futures traded 0.3% higher at $78.22 a barrel, while the contract climbed 0.2% to $83.13 a barrel.

Both contracts rose last week for a second week in a row and settled at their highest in nearly two months on Friday.

This attack was by Iran-backed militants, according to the U.S. President Joe Biden, and resulted in the death of three U.S. service members, the first deadly strike against U.S. forces since the Israel-Hamas war erupted.

Iran has denied involvement in the attack, but it does raise concerns of a more direct confrontation between the two countries, potentially resulting in regional energy supply disruptions in the oil-rich Middle East.

Additionally, rose 0.5% to $2,045.35/oz, while traded 0.3% lower at 1.0822.

(Oliver Gray contributed to this article.)

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