Money Watch

Stocks: Investors sit and wait

Posted: Aug 20, 2012 6:45 AM by CNNMoney staff
Updated: Aug 20, 2012 5:02 AM

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks head for another quiet day Monday, as investors hit pause ahead of possible news out of central banks later in the week.

Trading volume has been low over the past few days, with many investors on vacation and little news out of Europe. U.S. stock futures were slightly higher Monday morning.

Investors begin the week awaiting the tail end of corporate earnings season amid the market's usual summer doldrums.

U.S. stocks ended higher Friday, capping off a sixth straight week of gains. Stocks have been trading near the highest levels since May 2008, with the S&P 500 closed less than five points below the key 1,420 level.

World Markets: European stocks moved higher in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 ticked up 0.1%, the DAX in Germany added 0.5% and France's CAC 40 rose 0.3%.

Asian markets closed mixed. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.4% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shaved off 0.1%, while Japan's Nikkei ended up 0.1%.

Companies: Lowe's is expected to report earnings of 70 cents a share on $14.5 billion in revenue, according to a survey of analysts by Thomson Reuters.

Apple shares set another all-time high Friday on growing expectations for an upcoming wave of new gadgets. Shares were up slightly in premarket trading on Monday.

Economy: No major economic reports are expected on Monday.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.

Oil for September delivery rose 15 cents to $96.14 a barrel.

Gold futures for December delivery added 20 cents to $1,619.10 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury was unchanged, with the yield holding at 1.82% from late Friday.