Wall Street futures suggest modest gains at the open as investors adopt a cautious stance on risk heading into this week's Fed gathering. While market expectations point to an interest rate cut this year, most observers expect rates to stay unchanged at this meeting, although eyes will be on the wording of Jerome Powell's policy statement, as well as the dot plot. Bets on central bank action have underpinned stocks in recent weeks, even as manufacturing data continues to suggest that the U.S.-China trade dispute is having knock-on effects across the globe. (SA)

Shares in online pet supply retailer Chewy jumped about 60 per cent on their trading debut, giving the company a market capitalization of around $15bn as investors show a strong appetite for selected new listings.  The pop placed it towards the higher end of first-day performances for companies that have IPO’d this year. Some companies that listed last week, such as Fiverr, Revolve Group and CrowdStrike had first-day gains between 70 per cent and 90 per cent. (FT)

India will impose higher retaliatory tariffs on 28 U.S. products including almonds, apples and walnuts from Sunday, following Washington's decision to strip the country of preferential access to the American market. New Delhi initially issued an order in June last year to raise import taxes as high as 120% on a slew of U.S. items, incensed by Washington's refusal to exempt it from higher steel and aluminum tariffs, but repeatedly delayed the decision as the two nations engaged in trade talks. U.S.-India bilateral trade reached $142B in 2018, a seven-fold increase since 2001.

With Northwest Quadrant Wealth Management, a Registered Investment Advisor I am Josh Fenili.