Equities
Global markets turned lower as hopes for peace in the Middle East ebbed with tensions reigniting after Washington seized an Iranian cargo ship that tried to run its blockade and Tehran vowed to retaliate.
Wall Street futures were in the red after major North American markets closed higher Friday.
TSX futures followed sentiment lower ahead of inflation numbers for March.
In Canada, investors are getting results from PrairieSky Royalty Ltd.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Steel Dynamics Inc., Rio Tinto ADR and Cleveland-Cliffs Inc.
“The critical barometer of geopolitical risk has been distilled into one data point: The number of ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” said Bob Savage, head of markets macro strategy at BNY.
“Peace talks matter, but the immediate focus is on oil and other supply shortages driving inflation.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 1.08 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 declined 0.7 per cent, Germany’s DAX fell 1.36 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 1.12 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.6 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.77 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices jumped as markets grew increasingly concerned that the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran might not hold, while tensions over the Strait of Hormuz escalated.
Brent crude futures advanced 5.2 per cent to US$95.2 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate was up 6.07 per cent to US$88.94.
“Within 24 hours of Friday’s ’completely open’ announcement, there were already tankers that were fired upon by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” said Sparta Commodities analyst June Goh.
“Market fundamentals are getting worse, as 10-11 million barrels per day of crude oil remains shut in,” Goh added, referring to losses in oil production.
In other commodities, spot gold was down 0.8 per cent to US$4,790.59 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for June delivery fell 1.4 per cent to US$4,811.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 72.86 US cents to 73.09 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.27 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, gained 0.11 per cent to 98.20. The U.S. dollar traded at $1.3686.
The euro rose 0.08 per cent to US$1.1776. The British pound gained 0.06 per cent to US$1.3523.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.2673 per cent.
Economic news
8:30 a.m. ET: Canadian CPI for March. The Street is projecting a rise of 1.1 per cent from February and a gain of 2.6 per cent year-over-year.
8:30 a.m. ET: Canada’s construction investment for February.
11:30 a.m. ET: Bank of Canada’s Business Outlook Survey and Survey of Consumer Expectations are released.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press