Dow futures are down 130 points, and oil and metals stocks have taken a significant hit

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Stocks are expected to open substantially down on Monday, retreating from the previous session’s record highs, as steep drops in oil and gold prices weigh on the commodity sector. By 7:05 a.m. ET (1105 GMT), the Dow futures contract was down 130 points, or 0.4 percent, the S& P 500 futures were down 7 points, or 0.2 percent, and the Nasdaq 100 futures were up 10 points, or 0.1 percent.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up over 144 points, or 0.4 percent, at an all-time high of 35,208.51 on Friday, while the broad-based S& P 500 advanced 0.2 percent to also set a new high. The Nasdaq Composite bucked the trend, falling 0.4 percent. But, the upbeat tone has faded on Monday, as oil prices have fallen as a result of lower crude oil imports in China, the world’s largest energy consumer, putting pressure on the heavyweight energy companies.

Covid cases have risen again in China, and the additional mobility limitations have forced Goldman Sachs and other important investment firms to lower their full-year Chinese GDP growth prediction to 8.3 percent from 8.6 percent. By 7:05 a.m. ET, U.S. crude futures were down 4.2 percent at $65.39 a barrel, following a nearly 7 percent drop last week, the steepest weekly decline in nine months, while Brent futures were down 4.1 percent at $67.84 a barrel, following a 6 percent drop last week, the biggest weekly decline in nine months.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) was down 1.6 percent premarket, Chevron (NYSE: CVX) was down 1.7 percent, Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) was down 2.5 percent, and Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) was down 2.1 percent. Gold prices also fell to their lowest level since March, falling below $1,700/oz before recovering slightly to trade for $1,744.65/oz, still down around 4%. Gold and basic metals prices have fallen to their lowest levels since March, putting pressure on metal miners. Copper, for example, is deteriorating. The world’s largest publicly traded copper producer, Freeport-McMoran (NYSE: FCX), saw its stock drop 1.5 percent.

Even so, the United States has some positive news to offer. Early this week, the Senate is expected to pass a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure measure, resulting in the greatest investment in roads and bridges in decades in the United States. The June JOLTS survey, a report by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, is the centerpiece of the economic calendar. The Bureau of Labor Statistics will be used to help quantify job openings, but the major attention on Monday will be on talks by Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic and Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin.

Both Fed policymakers are known to favor tapering the central bank’s bond-buying programme sooner rather than later, so their views will be heavily scrutinized, especially in light of Friday’s good payrolls data. Even though the second-quarter earnings season is winding down, a number of notable companies are still scheduled to report this week. AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC), Coinbase Global (NASDAQ: COIN), Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS), Airbnb (NASDAQ: ABNB), and DoorDash are among the companies that fall within this category (NYSE: DASH).