5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens on Monday

Stock futures are pointing to a lower open for the last day of August; oil prices are rising after the U.S. and Iran exchanged strikes last night; the major indexes are set to post gains for the month of August despite volatility driven by the AI trade; Dell and Broadcom headline the earnings calendar this week, while the jobs report is due Friday; and today is Tim Cook's last day as CEO of Apple. Here's what you need to know today.

Stock Futures Lower as August Trading Wraps Up

Stock futures are lower this morning as oil prices rise. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq were down 0.2% recently. The major indexes ended lower on Friday , but still managed to post gains for the week. Crude oil futures were up more than 3% (more on that below), while gold futures fell 0.5% to $4,510. Bitcoin was trading around $78,500 this morning, up from weekend lows around $77,000 but down from last week's highs north of $81,000. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was holding steady at 4.72%.

Oil Prices Rise as US-Iran Strikes Pick Up Again

Oil prices are surging as fighting in Iran picked up again last night. The U.S. struck rocket launchers near Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz that the military says were preparing to launch rockets with mines into the vital shipping waterway. Iran's military called the attack an "act of aggression," but the U.S. Central Command said in response that U.S. forces "took limited, precise action" to stop the threat of mines being laid in the strait. Early this morning, the United Arab Emirates said its air force downed an Iranian drone that was approaching the country, with missiles also being intercepted over the country of Jordan in a series of retaliatory strikes. WTI crude oil futures were up 3.6% to $86.40 per barrel recently.

The major stock indexes are set to post gains for August in what has been a volatile month of trading. Entering today's session, the Dow is up 2.1%, while the S&P 500 and tech-focused Nasdaq are up 3% and 4.1%, respectively. This would mark the fifth straight month of gains for the Dow, while the S&P and Nasdaq are looking to snap two-month losing streaks. The Dow and S&P each set record closes earlier this month, while the Nasdaq is still trading more than 2% below its last record high set back in early June. The AI trade has seen more volatility this month amid concerns over the industry's financing.