US stocks set for cautious start on Tuesday as investors await further speeches from Federal Reserve officials

US stocks look likely to remain cautious on Tuesday as investors await clues from Federal Reserve officials about plans to ease stimulus measures following stronger than expected US jobs data last Friday. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average moved around small gains and losses, while S&P 500 futures inched up less than 0.1%, and Nasdaq-100 futures edged 0.1% higher. Separate speeches from the Fed’s Loretta Mester and Charles Evans later on Tuesday will be eyed by investors for clues on when the officials expect the central bank to begin tapering its economic support. On commodity markets, oil prices recovered a touch after slumping Monday amid fears that the spreading coronavirus (COVID-19) Delta variant could weigh on demand. Meanwhile, gold prices gained 0.5% after a roller-coaster performance in the previous session. Earnings are expected first thing Tuesday from the likes of Aramark, Sysco and Eastman Kodak, while cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global and software company McAfee are set to release earnings after the market close. In after-hours trading on Monday, AMC Entertainment Holdings rose after it said it was planning changes to make its theaters more appealing to younger patrons, including accepting bitcoin.  Six things to watch on Tuesday: Two Federal Reserve officials said on Monday that the US economy is growing rapidly and that while the labor market still has room for improvement, inflation is already at a level that could satisfy one leg of a key test for the beginning of interest rate hikes. Amazon.com Inc said it would pay customers who suffer injuries or property damage from defective goods others sell on its US platform, in a new policy that could reduce litigation. Japan's SoftBank Group Corp's Vision Fund unit posted a first-quarter profit of 236 billion yen ($2.14 billion) after gains from listing portfolio companies were offset by falling shares in firms like e-retailer Coupang Inc. Bayer has lost a third appeal against US court verdicts that awarded damages to customers blaming their cancers on use of its glyphosate-based weedkillers, leaving the German drugs and pesticides group to pin hopes for legal relief on the US Supreme Court. Indian oil-to-telecoms conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd said it would invest $144 million in US energy storage company Ambri Inc, along with billionaire Bill Gates, investment management firm Paulson & Co and others. Small business owners across the United States grew less confident in the economic recovery in July as labor shortages remained an issue, according to a survey released on Tuesday.