Stocks Opened Mixed amid Stimulus Hopes

U.S. stocks open mixed on Tuesday, with stimulus talks and a speech from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on tap. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 51.21 points or 0.18%, to 28,199.85. The S&P 500 was up 3.91 points, or 0.11%, to 3,404.72. The Nasdaq Composite fell 37.17 points, or 0.33%, to 11,295.32.

Oil futures rose Tuesday, as investors focused on a strike that’s curtailed Norwegian output and braced for Hurricane Delta, which could potentially make landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast later this week. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery rose 76 cents, or 1.9%, to $39.98 a barrel, while December Brent crude gained 77 cents, or 1.9%, at $42.06 a barrel.

Powell is scheduled to deliver a speech on the economic outlook to the National Association of Business Economics at 10:40 a.m. Eastern in Washington D.C.

The US trade deficit yawned further to $67.1 billion in August from $63.4 billion in July, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. This marked the widest since August 2006. Imports rose 3.2% month-over-month to $239 billion. Exports rose 2.2% to $171.9 billion.

The World Trade Organization (WTO)said on Tuesday that global merchandise trade would fall by 9.2% this year and then increase by 7.2% in 2021.