Investing.com - U.S. stock futures pointed to a slightly lower open on Tuesday, as traders await fresh developments from the latest round of U.S.- China trade talks due to resume later in the day.
The S&P 500 futures were down around nine points as of 6:55 AM ET (11:45 GMT), while Dow futures were off 91 points and tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures pointed to a drop of 20 points.
Markets are set to re-open on Tuesday after Monday’s holiday.
A new session of trade talks between the U.S. and China is to get underway in Washington Tuesday, with follow-up sessions at a higher level due to take place later in the week, the White House said on Monday.
The talks follow a round of negotiations that ended in Beijing last week without a deal but which officials said had resulted in progress.
U.S. tariffs on $200 billion in imports from China are set to rise to 25% from 10% if no deal is reached by March 1.
In earnings, Walmart (NYSE:WMT) is one of the last notable names slated to report quarterly results, as the fourth-quarter earnings season winds down.
The retail giant is expected to post earnings of $1.33 per share on revenue of $138.81 billion for the three months to January 31, according to analysts polled by Investing.com, when it reports before the opening bell.
U.S. same-store sales are expected to rise 3.0% from a year earlier
Other notable companies reporting results include, Advance Auto Parts, Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), and Herbalife (NYSE:HLF)
In economic news, investors will be looking to the National Association of Home Builders housing market index at 10:00 AM ET (15:00 GMT).
In commodities, gold futures advanced 0.72% to $1,331.6 a troy ounce, while crude oil was trading near three-month highs at $56.45 a barrel. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.18% to 96.91.
- Reuters contributed to this report