Equities
Global markets slid as hopes of a quick end to the Middle East conflict faded after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed more strikes on Iran.
Wall Street futures were in negative territory after a short-lived relief rally extended gains on North American markets yesterday.
TSX futures followed sentiment lower.
“We have no additional certainty or clarity around timeline from [Trump’s] address and this is what the market was looking for,” said Jon Withaar, senior portfolio manager at Pictet Asset Management in Singapore.
“The fact that we can expect 2-3 more weeks of action, boots on the ground were not ruled out and that threats to hit infrastructure were reiterated will put the market back on the defensive, particularly as we come into the long weekend.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 1.33 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 declined 0.45 per cent, Germany’s DAX dropped 2.22 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 1.25 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 2.38 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 0.7 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices jumped after Trump said the United States would keep up attacks on Iran without committing to a specific timeline to end the war, fanning investor fears about sustained disruptions to supply.
Brent crude futures rose 7.6 per cent to US$108.90 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 12.7 per cent to US$108.90 a barrel.
“Without any mention of a solid ceasefire plan or material off ramp, markets are left continuing to digest the administration’s statements,” said Claudio Galimberti, Rystad Energy’s chief economist.
In other commodities, spot gold dropped 3 per cent to US$4,612.54 an ounce. U.S. gold futures slid 3.6 per cent to US$4,637.70.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.76 US cents to 72.10 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 1.76 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar was trading at $1.3921. The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, gained 0.46 per cent to 100.11.
The euro fell 0.53 per cent to US$1.1529. The British pound dropped 0.7 per cent to US$1.3214.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.355 per cent.
Economic news
8:30 a.m. ET: Canada merchandise trade balance for February, which widened by a big margin, data showed, as higher gold imports took the total imports to a record high. A $5.74-billion deficit was reported, compared with estimates of $3-billion deficit.
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. initial jobless claims
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. goods and services deficit for February. Consensus is US$61.1-billion
With Reuters and The Canadian Press