WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the strength seen over the course of the previous session, stocks may show a lack of direction in early trading on Friday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures down by 0.1 percent.
Traders may take a breather following the volatility seen over the past few sessions, which has seen the major averages fluctuate considerably but remain on pace for a positive week.
A relatively quiet day on the U.S. economic front may keep traders on the sidelines, although the University of Michigan is due to release its revised reading on consumer sentiment in the month of November.
The consumer sentiment index for November is expected to be upward revised to 73.7 from the preliminary reading of 73.0, which was up from 70.5 in October.
More closely watched economic data is due to be released next week, including readings on consumer price inflation preferred by the Federal Reserve.
Among individual stocks, shares of Gap (GAP) are moving sharply higher in pre-market trading after the apparel retailer reported better than expected third quarter earnings and raised its full-year guidance.
Data technology company NetApp (NTAP) is also likely to see initial strength after reporting fiscal second quarter earnings that exceeded analyst estimates.
Meanwhile, shares of Intuit (INTU) may move to the downside after the financial software company reported better than expected fiscal first quarter results but provided disappointing guidance for the current quarter.
Stocks saw considerable volatility early in the session on Thursday but moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day. The major averages all finished the day in positive territory, with the Dow posting a standout gain.
The Dow jumped 461.88 points or 1.1 percent to 43,870.35 and the S&P 500 climbed 31.60 points or 0.5 percent to 5,948.71, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq posted a much more modest gain, inching up 6.28 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 18,972.42.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Friday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped by 1.9 percent and China's Shanghai Composite Index plunged by 3.1 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have all moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 1.1 percent, the German DAX Index is up by 0.6 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.3 percent.
In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.41 to $69.69 a barrel after jumping $1.35 to $70.10 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after leaping $23.20 to $2,674.90 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $21.10 to $2,696 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 154.21 yen versus the 154.54 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0432 compared to yesterday's $1.0474.
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