Financial markets modestly lower before US trading opens

By The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street premarket trading pointed to a modestly lower open Tuesday on the heels of the market’s worst trading month since early in the pandemic. As traders prepare for another busy day of corporate earnings releases, futures for the benchmark S&P 500 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each fell about 0.1% less than two hours before the opening bell. Investors expect the Federal Reserve to begin raising interest rates in March to fight inflation. Ultra-low rates and other stimulus have helped markets recover from the initial shock of the coronavirus pandemic, and then supported stunning gains until recently.