Equities
Global markets surged, buoyed by hopes of a trade agreement between the European Union and United States after Japan struck a deal that lowers tariffs on its autos, sending Japanese stocks to a one-year high.
Wall Street futures were in positive territory after the S&P 500 eked out another record close yesterday.
TSX futures followed sentiment higher after Canada’s main stock index closed up yesterday on a boost from metal prices.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Rogers Communications Inc., Whitecap Resources Inc. and West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd.
Rogers has raised its guidance for service revenue this year and said it would spend at the bottom of its estimated capital expenditure range in 2025, The Globe’s Irene Galea reports, even as subscriber growth and profit declined steeply during the telecom’s second quarter.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Alphabet Inc., Tesla Inc., International Business Machines Inc., AT&T Inc., General Dynamics Corp., Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc., CSX Corp., Freeport-McMoran Inc., Mattel Inc., Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. and Wyndham Hotels & Resorts Inc.
The trade deal news has “raised hopes that the U.S. might be about to reach deals with other countries that avoid the higher tariffs on August 1,” Deutsche Bank analysts wrote in a note.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 1.04 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.44 per cent, Germany’s DAX gained 0.67 per cent and France’s CAC 40 advanced 1.25 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 3.51 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 1.62 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices fell for the fourth consecutive session, as investors assessed trade developments including a U.S. tariff deal with Japan.
Brent crude futures were down 0.5 per cent to US$68.24 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at US$64.98 a barrel, down 0.5 per cent.
“The slide (in prices) of the past three sessions appears to have abated but I don’t expect much of an upward impetus from news of the U.S.-Japan trade deal as the hurdles and delays being reported in talks with the EU and China will remain a drag on sentiment,” said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.
In other commodities, spot gold was down 0.2 per cent at US$3,425.58 an ounce after hitting its highest point since June 16 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures also slipped 0.2 per cent to US$3,437.90.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 73.43 US cents to 73.67 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 1.05 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, rose 0.1 per cent to 97.49.
The euro slid 0.31 per cent to US$1.1719. The British pound was little changed at US$1.3535.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.372 per cent.
Economic news
Euro area consumer confidence
8:30 am ET: Canada new housing price index for June, which decline 0.2 per cent on a month-over-month basis.
10 am ET: U.S. existing home sales for June. Consensus is for a 0.7 per cent decline.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press