Trading on Wall Street was quietly mixed on Monday at the outset of a week likely to be focused on an earnings report by chipmaker Nvidia and the first government employment data release in more than six weeks.
Futures for the S&P 500 the Dow Jones Industrial Average each edged less than 0.1% lower, while Nasdaq futures inched up less than 0.1% before the opening bell.
Google's parent company Alphabet jumped more than 4% after Warren Buffett's Berkshire
Hathaway disclosed in an regulatory filing that it had taken a more than $4 billion stake in the technology giant.
All eyes will be on Nvidia's latest financial results, which come Wednesday after the market closes. The chipmaker has been leading the surge in artificial intelligence stocks, recently becoming the first company ever to eclipse the $5 trillion market capitalization threshold, albeit briefly.
Nvidia shares have retreated in recent weeks as critics warn that U.S. stocks, particularly those related to the AI frenzy, may have become overvalued.
One way companies can tamp down criticism about too-high stock prices is to deliver solid growth in profits. That’s raising the stakes for Nvidia’s profit report Wednesday, when it will say how much it earned during the summer.
This week's earnings release schedule also includes some of the nation's biggest retailers, which, in the absence of government-produced economic data, could provide some insight into the health of the American consumer. Home Depot, Target and Walmart all report their latest results this week.
On Thursday, the Labor Department will release its numbers on September hiring and unemployment marking the beginning of the end of a data drought caused by the 43-day federal government shutdown.
The statistical blackout meant that the Federal Reserve, businesses, policymakers and investors have largely been in the dark about inflation, job creation, GDP growth and other measures of the U.S. economic health since late summer.
In Europe at midday, Germany's DAX fell 0.6%, while the CAC 40 in Paris slipped 0.5%. Britain's FTSE 100 was 0.2% lower.
In Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.1% to 50,323.91 after the government reported that the Japanese economy contracted at a 1.8% annual pace in the July-September quarter.
The dollar rose against the Japanese yen, climbing to 154.86 yen from 154.58 yen.
Chinese markets also slipped, as Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.7% to 26,384.28. The Shanghai Composite index declined 0.5% to 3,972.03.
Geopolitical tensions have dimmed investor sentiment in East Asia, as relations between China and Japan have deteriorated due to a spat following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's suggestion that a Chinese move against self-governing Taiwan could prompt a Japanese military response.
China objects to other countries' involvement in Taiwan, which Beijing claims it as its own and destined to come under its control. The Chinese government has warned its citizens not to travel to Japan or study there.
“China’s escalation against Japan over Prime Minister Takaichi’s Taiwan remarks has moved from a diplomatic irritant to a consequential macro input, with markets now forced to reprice Asia’s near-term risk curve,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.
In South Korea, the Kospi gained 1.9% to 4,089.25 on buying of tech-related shares. Computer chipmakers have rallied after they formed plans with industry leader Nvidia to cooperate in developing artificial intelligence, with SK Hynix surging 8.2% on Monday and Samsung Electronics up 3.5%.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was nearly unchanged at 8,636.40.
In Taiwan, the Taiex picked up 0.2%, while India's Sensex gained 0.5%.
In energy trading, U.S. benchmark crude oil picked up 14 cents to $60.23 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gained 13 cents to $64.52 per barrel.
