Equities
Global markets climbed as Israel sought talks with Lebanon, raising hopes for a break in Middle East hostilities and an opening of the Strait of Hormuz.
Investors held to guarded optimism with delegations from Tehran and Washington set to hold talks in Pakistan tomorrow.
Wall Street futures were muted after March inflation data calmed some concerns over the inflationary fallout of the Middle East conflict on the U.S. economy.
TSX futures were in positive territory as markets assessed March jobs numbers in line with expectations.
In Canada, investors are getting results from MTY Food Group Inc. and Corus Entertainment Inc.
“For markets at least, the financial stress has continued to ease before the weekend talks,” Deutsche Bank analysts wrote. “So those hopes for a de-escalation in Lebanon helped ease concerns that the broader ceasefire could fall apart ahead of this weekend’s talks.”
Wall Street’s week ahead: U.S. earnings season set to test war-rattled stocks
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.87 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.38 per cent, Germany’s DAX climbed 0.89 per cent and France’s CAC 40 rose 0.77 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.84 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 0.55 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices turned lower amid anxiety over supplies from Saudi Arabia and as tanker traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz remained largely frozen.
Brent crude futures were down 0.48 per cent to US$95.54 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures inched down 0.29 per cent to US$97.59 a barrel.
In other commodities, spot gold slipped 0.2 per cent to US$4,755.45 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for June delivery fell 1.1 per cent to US$4,767.30.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 72.23 US cents to 72.41 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 0.79 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, fell 0.13 per cent to 98.69. The U.S. currency traded at $1.3826.
The euro gained 0.15 per cent to US$1.1718. The British pound advanced 0.18 per cent to US$1.3459.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.300 per cent.
Economic news
China’s CPI and PPI
Japan’s bank lending
Germany’s CPI
8:30 a.m. ET: Canadian employment for March, which added 14,100 jobs compared with an estimated gain of 15,000 jobs. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.7 per cent, compared with the 6.8 per cent forecast.
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. CPI for March, which increased as expected by 0.9 per cent from February and 3.3 per cent year-over-year.
10 a.m. ET: U.S. University of Michigan consumer sentiment for April.
10 a.m. ET: U.S. factory orders for February.
2 p.m. ET: U.S. budget balance for March.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press