Equities
World stocks rallied with European markets hitting record highs as the U.S. Congress looked set to end a federal shutdown, paving the way for a data fog that has fuelled U.S. economic uncertainty to clear.
Wall Street futures edged higher, with Dow futures rising 0.22 per cent, S&P500 futures advancing 0.33 per cent and Nasdaq futures gaining 0.59 per cent as of 8:33 a.m.
TSX futures were also up.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Manulife Financial Corp., Power Corp. of Canada, SmartCentres REIT and Northland Power Corp.
Loblaw Companies Ltd. reported increased sales and profits in the third quarter, as shoppers still stinging from high food inflation in recent years visited its discount grocery stores looking for savings, Susan Krashinsky Robertson reports.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Cisco Systems Inc.
“U.S. government shutdowns have historically had only a muted market impact, so any quick shift in investor sentiment should not come as a surprise,” said analysts at UBS Global Wealth Management.
“As official economic data resumes following the reopening of the government, more evidence of a cooling labor market should clear the path for further Fed easing.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 advanced 0.72 per cent in midday trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was flat, Germany’s DAX gained 1.14 per cent and France’s CAC 40 was up 1.28 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.43 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.85 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices fell, weighed down by oversupply in the market despite expectations that an end to the U.S. government shutdown could boost oil demand.
Brent crude futures slipped 1.35 per cent to US$64.28 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude was down 1.43 per cent at US$60.17 a barrel.
“Overall, both WTI and Brent remain well and truly stuck, with short-term speculative trading providing most of the activity,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.
In other commodities, spot gold was steady at US$4,125.22 per ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery rose 0.4 per cent to US$4,130.90 per ounce.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar was little changed against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.31 US cents to 71.42 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.2 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, gained 0.22 per cent to 99.53.
The euro was down 0.15 per cent at US$1.1566. The British pound was down 0.50 per cent to US$1.3085.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.081 per cent.
Economic news
Japan machine tool orders
Germany CPI
(8:30 a.m. ET) Canadian building permits for September.
(1:30 p.m. ET) Bank of Canada’s Summary of Deliberations for the Oct. 29 decision.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press