Equities
Global markets edged higher as traders awaited a key speech from U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell this morning at the Jackson Hole symposium that could shed light on the direction of monetary policy.
Wall Street futures were in positive territory after markets closed lower yesterday.
TSX futures pointed higher after Canada’s main stock market closed above 28,000 for the first time yesterday, buoyed by resource stocks.
“Top of mind among investors is what central bankers will say about U.S. tariffs and their impact on economic growth and inflation, and which of these two factors will have a bigger influence on interest rate policy, as central banks grapple with the risk of stagflation,” said Vasu Menon, managing director for investment strategy at OCBC in Singapore.
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Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.23 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.11 per cent, Germany’s DAX edged down 0.03 per cent and France’s CAC 40 advanced 0.12 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.05 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.9 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices were little changed as hopes for an imminent peace deal between Russia and Ukraine dimmed, putting prices on track for their first weekly gain in three weeks.
Brent crude futures were up 0.12 per cent at US$67.75 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 0.25 per cent to US$63.68. Both contracts gained more than 1 per cent yesterday.
“Everyone is waiting for President [Donald] Trump’s next step,” said UBS commodity analyst Giovanni Staunovo. “Over the coming days, it seems nothing will happen.”
In other commodities, spot gold fell 0.4 per cent to US$3,326.35 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery lost 0.4 per cent to US$3,368.80.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.84 US cents to 71.95 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 1.5 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, rose 0.06 per cent to 98.67.
The gained 0.1 per cent to US$1.1620. The British pound rose 0.05 per cent to US$1.3421.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.318 per cent.
Other corporate news
Canadian oil and gas producer Cenovus Energy says it will buy MEG Energy in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $7.9-billion, including debt, to create one of the largest oil sands companies in Canada.
Economic news
Japan CPI
Germany GDP
(8:30 a.m. ET) Canadian retail sales for June, which rose 1.5 per cent to $70.2=billion, helped by increased spending at food and beverage retailers. The Street expected a month-over-month rise of 1.1 per cent.
(10 a.m. ET) U.S. Fed chair Jerome Powell speaks on the Economic Outlook and Framework Review at the Jackson Hole Symposium.
(10:30 a.m. ET) Bank of Canada Senior Loan Officer Survey for Q2.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press