After moving sharply lower over the two previous sessions, stocks may move back to the upside in early trading on Tuesday. The major index futures are currently pointing to a higher open for the markets, with the S&P 500 futures up by 0.3 percent.

Bargain hunting may contribute to initial strength on Wall Street, as traders pick up stocks at relatively reduced levels following the steep drops seen over the past two days.

The Dow fell to a nearly three-month closing low on Monday, while the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 hit their lowest closing levels in almost two months.

After closing lower for six straight sessions, the Dow may lead the rebound amid a surge by shares of UnitedHealth (UNH).

UnitedHealth is spiking by 7.6 percent in pre-market trading after the healthcare giant reported first quarter results that exceeded analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines.

Financial giant Morgan Stanley (MS) is also likely to see initial strength after reporting better than expected first quarter results.

Meanwhile, shares of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) are seeing some pre-market weakness despite the healthcare giant reporting first quarter earnings that beat expectations.

On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department released a report showing housing starts pulled back by much more than expected in the month of March.

The Commerce Department said housing starts plummeted by 14.7 percent to an annual rate of 1.321 million in March after soaring by 12.7 percent to a revised rate of 1.549 million in February.

Economists had expected housing starts to slump by 2.7 percent to an annual rate of 1.480 million from the 1.521 million originally reported for the previous month.

The report said building permits also tumbled by 4.3 percent to an annual rate of 1.458 million in March after jumping by 2.3 percent to a revised rate of 1.523 million in February.

Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, were expected to dip by 0.3 percent to a rate of 1.514 million from the 1.518 million originally reported for the previous month.

Shortly before the start of trading, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its report on industrial production in the month of March. Industrial production is expected to rise by 0.4 percent in March after inching up by 0.1 percent in February.

Following the steep drop seen last Friday, stocks showed another substantial move to the downside over the course of the trading session on Monday. The major averages moved notably higher early in the session but pulled back sharply as the day progressed.

The major averages all closed firmly in the red, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq showing a particularly steep drop. The Nasdaq plunged 290.08 points or 1.8 percent to 15,885.02, the S&P 500 tumbled 61.59 points or 1.2 percent to 5,061.82 and the Dow slid 248.13 points or 0.7 percent to 37,735.11.

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved sharply lower during trading on Tuesday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dove by 1.9 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index plummeted by 2.1 percent.

The major European markets have also shown significant moves to the downside on the day. While the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index has tumbled by 1.3 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index are both down by 1.1 percent.

In commodities trading, crude oil futures are falling $0.38 to $85.03 a barrel after slipping $0.25 to $85.41 a barrel on Monday. Meanwhile, after climbing $8.90 to $2,383 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are inching up $6.80 to $2,389.80 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 154.58 yen compared to the 154.28 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Monday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0646 compared to yesterday’s $1.0624.