US stock futures flat after Dow posts losses for week

U.S. stock index futures were little changed during overnight trading on Sunday, after the S&P 500 posted its second negative week in a row, CNBC reports.

Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 44 points. S&P 500 futures were flat, while Nasdaq 100 futures slid by 0.15 percent

Stocks are coming off a mixed week which saw the Dow post its fourth negative week in five, while the S&P registered two straight weeks of losses for the first time since February. The Nasdaq Composite, meanwhile, gained 0.31 percent last week, snapping a four-week losing streak.

Despite the tech-heavy index’s weekly gain, however, the Nasdaq Composite finished Friday’s session in the red as bitcoin prices once again moved lower, putting pressure on the broader technology sector.

The cryptocurrency’s sell-off continued on Sunday, with bitcoin dropping around 16 percent to under US$32,000, according to data from Coin Metrics. On Wednesday, bitcoin prices tumbled to just above US$30,000, dropping to the lowest level since late January.

“The rapid rise in digital currency values hit a major speedbump this week as cryptocurrencies of all stripes saw sharp declines in their prices,” strategists at CIBC wrote in a note to clients. “The asset class continues to be highly volatile, with the potential of significant price movements resulting from a single tweet or public comment.”