U.S. markets ponder a possible OPEC price increase, await reports on consumer and home sales.
April 27, 2004: 8:08 AM EDT
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Rumblings about higher OPEC oil price targets and new readings on consumer confidence and existing home sales will keep investors focused on the economy in Tuesday's stock trading.
For details of Monday's mushy session, click above
Early Tuesday, futures pointed to a mixed start for the major indexes.
Brent oil futures rose 24 cents to $33.82 a barrel in London after the president of OPEC and some other oil ministers told reporters the cartel is looking at raising the target price of a barrel of crude. The market price of crude is already above the current target range of $22-$28 a barrel, but a rise in the target could lead to further price increases.
The report on March existing home sales, due at 10 a.m. ET, is forecast to show a rise in the annual rate of 6.2 million from 6.1 million in February, according to analysts surveyed by Briefing.com. Mortgage rates were near a four-decade low in March, although they have risen somewhat since. A report on new home sales Monday showed the largest one-month gain in nine months.
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Investors will also get a reading on consumer confidence from the Conference Board. Briefing.com's forecast is for the index to rise to 88.5 for April from 88.3 in March. But other surveys on consumer confidence have shown a decline despite some improving reports on employment, manufacturing activity, retail sales and other economic measures.
On Monday, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 0.3 percent while the Nasdaq composite index slipped 0.6 percent, as concern about inflation in the wake of a rise in new home sales and the ongoing violence in Iraq gave investors pause. (See chart for details)
Asian-Pacific stocks finished mixed Tuesday, with Tokyo's Nikkei index down 1 percent. European markets were all slightly lower as midday approached. (Check the latest on world markets)
Treasury prices rose in early trading, sending the 10-year note yield down to 4.42 percent from 4.43 late Monday. The dollar weakened against the yen and euro.
In corporate news, three Dow components are set to report first-quarter results, with DuPont and Verizon set to announce before the bell and McDonald's scheduled for an after-market report.
No. 2 U.S. chemical firm DuPont (DD: Research, Estimates) posted a first-quarter operating profit of 96 cents a share, topping Wall Street's estimates by a penny.
Telecom service provider Verizon (VZ: Research, Estimates), one of the three additions to the Dow earlier this month, reported a first-quarter profit of 58 cents a share, down from 68 cents a year earlier, but also a penny above estimates.
McDonald's (MCD: Research, Estimates), whose CEO died last week, is forecast to report earnings per share of 40 cents, up from 29 cents a year earlier.
Health insurance provider United Health Group (UHP: Research, Estimates) agreed to buy smaller Oxford Health Plans (OHP: Research, Estimates) for about $4.6 billion in cash and stock, in a deal announced after the market close Monday.
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