Equities
Global stocks climbed as hopes for a U.S. interest-rate cut next week helped keep markets afloat.
Wall Street futures edged higher after major U.S. markets closed down yesterday. Dow futures were up 0.16 per cent, S&P 500 futures rose 0.26 per cent and Nasdaq futures were 0.42 per cent higher at 9:10 a.m. ET.
TSX futures were in positive territory after Canada’s main stock market was weighed down yesterday by tech share losses.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Bank of Nova Scotia. It reported higher fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates as activity in capital markets and wealth management surged, offsetting a restructuring charge aimed at cutting costs., banking reporter Stefanie Marotta writes.
Canadian banks expected to report higher profit despite trade war and economic uncertainty
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from CrowdStrike Holdings Inc., Marvell Technologies Inc. and Pure Storage Inc.
“Yesterday’s U.S. data highlighted economic weakness beyond AI hype: Factory activity contracted for the ninth straight month, orders fell at the steepest pace in four months and employment shrank,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, wrote in a note.
“Judging by the data and Fed funds futures, a rate cut next week seems highly likely; otherwise, the market reaction would be severe.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.2 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.18 per cent, Germany’s DAX rose 0.48 per cent and France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.1 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed flat, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng advanced 0.24 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices held firm as traders weighed up risks from Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian energy sites and mounting U.S.-Venezuela tension.
Brent crude futures fell 0.2 per cent to US$63.05 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down 0.1 per cent to trade at $59.25 a barrel.
“Focus is ... on the Ukrainian peace talks, which might result in Russia increasing its crude oil and product exports once again, although this process is likely to be protracted,” said Tamas Varga, an analyst at PVM Oil Associates.
In other commodities, spot gold fell 0.7 per cent to US$4,204.50 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for February delivery were down 0.9 per cent at US$4,235.50 an ounce.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.34 US cents to 71.48 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.81 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, was little changed at 99.43.
The euro advanced 0.1 per cent to US$1.1622. The British pound fell 0.07 per cent to US$1.3206.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.113 per cent.
Other corporate news
Laurentian Bank of Canada has struck a deal to be taken over by Fairstone Bank of Canada in an all-cash transaction valued at $1.9-billion as part of the lender’s strategy to focus on its commercial business.
Economic news
Japan consumer confidence
Euro zone jobless rate and CPI
With Reuters and The Canadian Press