Opening Comment — Monday, February 02, 2026
DJIA: 48,892.47, down 179.09
S&P 500: 6,939.03, down 29.98
NASDAQ: 23,461.82, down 223.30
Stocks lower ahead of PMI data
Stock futures are lower Monday morning ahead of today’s January manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) data release from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), along with a finalized reading from S&P Global. Markets are also expecting a quick resolution to the partial government shutdown which began following funding lapsing over the weekend. As of 7:19 AM ET, the Dow is decreasing 0.1%, while the S&P 500 is down 0.4%. The Nasdaq 100 is falling 0.7% relative to fair value on the GLOBEX.
U.S. equities were lower on Friday following President Donald Trump’s announcement that he will nominate Kevin Warsh as the new Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair. The headline and core Producer Price Index (PPI) climbed more than expected, rising by 0.5% and 0.7% month-over-month (MOM), respectively, while the year-over-year (YOY) growth rose by 3.0% and 3.3%, respectively. The Dow was down 0.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9%. The S&P 500 decreased 0.4% with seven of 11 sectors finishing in negative territory. The Consumer Staples sector was the top performer, rising 1.4%, while the Materials sector was the bottom performer, falling 1.8%.
On the data front, the finalized reading of S&P Global’s manufacturing PMI for January is expected to come in at 52.0, slightly up from the previous reading of 51.9. The ISM manufacturing PMI and prices paid component for January are expected to come in at 48.5 and 59.3, respectively, versus the prior month’s 47.9 and 58.5, respectively.
Across the pond, European stocks are higher in mid-day trading as January’s finalized manufacturing PMIs for the U.K., Germany, France and the eurozone were revised higher to 51.8, 49.1, 51.2, and 49.5, respectively. The U.K.’s Nationwide House Price Index for January showed an increase of 0.3% MOM and a larger-than-expected increase of 1.0% YOY. Germany’s retail sales increased by 0.1% MOM and 3.2% YOY in December.
Overnight in Asia, stocks were mostly lower as China’s January manufacturing and non-manufacturing PMIs fell to 49.3 and 49.4, respectively, while the country’s private manufacturing PMI unexpectedly rose to 50.3. South Korea’s January trade surplus widened more than forecasted following a larger-than-expected increase in exports and a smaller-than-anticipated increase in imports. Australia’s Melbourne Institute inflation gauge recorded increases of 0.2% MOM and 3.6% YOY in January. Meanwhile, the January S&P Global manufacturing PMI for South Korea came in at 51.2, while Australia’s and Japan’s finalized readings came in at 52.3 and 51.5, respectively.
In FOREX trading, the U.S. dollar is slightly higher ahead of today’s U.S. PMI data release.
Over in the commodity pits, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil is 5.2% lower at $61.79/barrel amidst easing concerns of a U.S.-Iran conflict. Meanwhile, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries decided during their weekend meeting to keep their production quotas unchanged in March.
In the metals complex, gold is 2.6% lower at $4,766.09/ounce following a significant drop to end out last week.