Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:
1. Monday market overview
1. Monday market overview
U.S. stock futures are not making any major moves ahead of the open following a third straight week of losses on the key indexes.
Last week the Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.2%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.5% and the Nasdaq dropped 0.4%.
"The last time the [Dow] registered three consecutive weekly losses was at the start of the year. Needless to say, the damage was far more severe then," said Mike O'Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading.
The majority of European markets are dropping in early trading, while most Asian markets ended the day with gains.
2. Potential market mover
2. Potential market mover
Shares in Yahoo (YHOO, Tech30) could pop at the open as it emerged over the weekend that an investing group backed by Warren Buffett is among the bidders for Yahoo's core Internet business.
A Buffett-backed bid could challenge Verizon (VZ, Tech30)'s status as the most likely buyer of the business. Verizon has been expanding into digital content and advertising and last year bought AOL for more than $4 billion.
3. Crude reality
3. Crude reality
Crude oil futures are trading around $47 per barrel. The last time oil traded at this level was just over six months ago.
Prices are rising Monday in reaction to a Goldman Sachs (GS) report that says oversupply in the market has come to an end due to "sustained strong demand as well as sharply declining production."
Crude prices have been recovering since hitting a historic low around $26 per barrel in mid-February.
4. Economics
4. Economics
China economic data disappoints in April
China's investment, industrial output and retail sales all rose more slowly than expected in April, adding to concerns over the outlook for the world's second-largest economy.
Data on Saturday showed that factory output slowed to 6% in April, against expectations of 6.5%.
Fixed-asset investment growth eased to 10.5% year-on-year in the January-April period, while retail sales growth slowed to 10.1% on an annual basis.
The National Association of Home Builders will release its housing market index for May at 10 a.m. ET.
