MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks: Fed Speakers, Iran Keep Investors On Edge As Quarter Ends

By Barbara Kollmeyer, MarketWatch

Dollar strength weighs on commodities

MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Wall Street looks ready to end a winning quarter with a whimper, with stock futures pulling back on Tuesday as investors wait for oil-sensitive headlines on Iran and a crop of Federal Reserve speakers.

Futures followed European markets, which tilted lower on weaker-than-expected joblessness data. In the U.S., a trio of data releases will include Case-Shiller home prices.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YMM5) pulled back 60 points to 17,800, while those for the S&P 500 (ESM5) eased 8.85 points to 2,066.75. Futures for the Nasdaq-100 (NQM5) fell 15.75 points to 4,356.50.

Stocks could be ready to take a breather after booking solid gains for a second straight session on Monday, helped along by dovish comments from China's central-bank chief and corporate-deal news. Tuesday marks the end of the first quarter, and analysts said that close could trigger some volatility as investors look to balance the books.

The S&P 500 (SPX) is set to end the first quarter up 1.3%, which would mark its ninth-straight winning quarter. For the month of March, the index is looking at a 0.9% loss. Among other highlights, the Nasdaq Composite Index (RIXF) is set to log a 4.5% gain in the quarter, the longest quarterly winning streak in its history.

Need to Know: Don't be the 6-foot-tall man about to drown in this market (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dont-be-the-6-foot-tall-man-about-to-drown-in-this-market-2015-03-31)

Home prices and lots of Fedspeak: Data for Tuesday includes Case-Shiller home prices for February, due at 9 a.m. Eastern Time, while the Chicago-area purchasing managers' index for March is due at 9:45 a.m. Eastern. At 10 a.m. Eastern, the report on consumer confidence for March is scheduled.

Three Fed speakers are on tap. Two are voting members on the Federal Open Market Committee: Richmond Fed Jeffrey will speak on the economic outlook to the Greater Richmond Chamber of Commerce at 8 a.m. Eastern, while Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart will give welcoming remarks at the Atlanta Fed conference at 8:50 a.m. Eastern.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, a nonvoting member, will moderate a panel on the future of banking at an Atlanta Fed conference at 8:50 a.m. Eastern.

Stocks to watch: Shares of McDonald's Corp. (MCD) could draw some attention after the fast-food giant said it would start testing all-day breakfasts in San Diego in April (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/mcdonalds-to-give-all-day-breakfast-a-try-2015-03-30).

IBM Corp. (IBM) said Tuesday it plans to invest $3 billion in a new "Internet of Things" business that will help customers gather and analyze data from sensor-equipped devices and smartphones. Alongside that, it announced a partnership with the Weather Company on data analysis for businesses.

U.S. cable T.V. operator Cablevision Systems Corp.(CVC) is eyeing a deal to buy the New York Daily News that would value the newspaper at $1, Reuters reported, citing sources.

Other markets: European stocks retreated after data showed eurozone unemployment was still above expectations at 11.3% in February, after upward revisions to prior months.

Asian stocks (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-stocks-end-mixed-after-previous-china-led-rally-2015-03-31) closed on a mixed note, but the quarter produced double-digit wins for the Nikkei 225 index and the Shanghai Composite Index .

Dollar (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dollar-inches-up-against-euro-yen-as-big-data-week-kicks-off-2015-03-30)(DXY) strength continued, helping to put pressure commodities. Oil prices (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-fall-as-iran-nuclear-talks-approach-deadline-2015-03-31)(CLK5) fell as talks over Iran's nuclear talks (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/iran-deal-put-at-risk-by-uncertainty-over-khamenei-2015-03-31) neared a deadline, and gold (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/gold-weakens-for-third-straight-session-2015-03-31)(GCJ5) marked another losing session.

Read: Oil could fall below $30 a barrel, but here's why that is a good thing (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-could-fall-below-30-a-barrel-but-heres-why-thats-a-good-thing-2015-03-30)

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