Equities
Global markets were mixed after all but one of Big Tech’s Magnificent Seven reported earnings, with varied results, amid hope that massive AI spending will ultimately bolster growth.
Wall Street futures pointed higher after upbeat forecasts from Apple and Amazon helped soothe nerves a day after the indexes logged their steepest drop in more than three weeks.
Dow futures were up 0.26 per cent, S&P 500 futures rose 0.89 per cent, and Nasdaq futures were 1.48 per cent higher as of 9 a.m. ET.
TSX futures were in positive territory after Canada’s main stock index ended modestly higher yesterday.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Canadian National Railway Co., Cenovus Energy Inc., Imperial Oil Ltd. and Magna International Inc.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Exxon Mobil Corp., AbbVie Inc., Chevron Corp. and Colgate-Palmolive Co.
“Profit growth in tech companies remains incredibly strong but will moderate, so tech stocks are likely to have a bit of a pullback especially on high valuations,” said Diana Mousina, deputy chief economist at AMP.
Wall Street’s week ahead: Resilient stocks rally faces earnings wave after AI, Fed wobbles
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.45 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.34 per cent, Germany’s DAX dropped 0.48 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.42 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 2.12 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.43 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices were heading for a third consecutive monthly decline due to a stronger U.S. dollar and weak China data as well as rising supply from major producers globally.
Brent crude futures slid 0.6 per cent to US$64.62 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude traded at US$60.19 a barrel, down 0.6 per cent.
“A stronger USD weighed on investor appetite across the commodities complex,” ANZ analysts said in a client note.
In other commodities, spot gold was down 0.5 per cent at US$4,004.37 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery were steady at 0.1 per cent to US$4,016.30 an ounce.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.24 US cents to 71.54 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 0.57 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, advanced 0.14 per cent to 99.67.
The euro slid 0.09 per cent to US$1.1556. The British pound declined 0.36 per cent to US$1.3107.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.098 per cent.
Other corporate news
A MEG Energy Corp. shareholder vote on the proposed takeover by Cenovus Energy has been delayed another week. MEG board chair James McFarland twice paused the meeting yesterday to address a last-minute “regulatory inquiry” before adjourning it until Nov. 6.
Economic news
*Note: Scheduled U.S. data reports may not be released if the government shutdown isn’t resolved.
China PMI
Japan jobless rate, retail sales and industrial production
Euro zone CPI
Germany retail sales
8:30 a.m. ET: Canada’s monthly real GDP for August, which contracted 0.3 per cent against widespread expectations of no growth, but an advanced estimate pointed out the economy might escape a recession in the third quarter.
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. personal spending and income for September.
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. core PCE price index for September.
9:45 a.m. ET: U.S. Chicago PMI for October.
Also: Ottawa’s budget balance
With Reuters and The Canadian Press