The markets were looking calm ahead of the opening bell Monday, as investors take a breather after two weeks of losses.
U.S. stock futures were flat Monday morning, and trading could be quiet since no major corporate or economic reports on the agenda. Investors remained sidelined as talk that the Federal Reserve could begin tapering its bond buying program pushes bond yields higher.
Quarterly results are due later in the week from firms including J.C. Penney, Target and Hewlett-Packard.
U.S. stocks finished slightly lower Friday.
The markets took a large drop Thursday, leaving the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 with losses in excess of 2 percent for the week. This was the second consecutive week of losses.
However, it’s worth noting that the major indexes are still up by 15-to-20 percent for the year.
European markets were declining in morning trading, with Germany’s benchmark Dax index off by 0.7 percent.
Asian markets ended the trading session with mixed results. Both the Shanghai Composite index and Japan’s Nikkei bumped up by 0.8 percent. Stocks in Hong Kong declined by 0.3 percent.
