Equities
Global markets were muted after a shaky truce held between Washington and Tehran despite a deadlock in peace talks.
Wall Street futures were mixed with the Nasdaq riding revived AI optimism.
TSX futures were flat after Canada’s main stock index posted a three-week high yesterday.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Manulife Financial Corp., Hydro One Ltd., Northland Power Inc. and Stantec Inc.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Cisco Systems Inc. and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
“The market is so crowded with dip buyers that the dips barely become perceptible,’ Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, wrote in a note.
“But every new point on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq feels like another Jenga block balancing on borrowed stability.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.5 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.17 per cent, Germany’s DAX advanced 0.82 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.28 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.84 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.15 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices eased as investors awaited developments from the fragile Middle East ceasefire and braced for a high-stakes summit in Beijing between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.
Brent crude futures dropped 0.5 per cent to US$107.30 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate futures fell 0.74 per cent to US$101.40.
“Concerns over supply disruptions and uncertainty surrounding the Middle East are keeping oil prices well supported, even as traders struggle to establish a clear direction,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova.
“The market remains highly reactive to every update from the region, meaning sharp swings are likely to persist.”
In other commodities, spot gold fell 0.4 per cent to US$4,694.59 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for June delivery gained 0.3 per cent to US$4,702.40.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar was little changed against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 72.92 US cents to 73.08 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.34 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, rose 0.21 per cent to 98.50. The dollar was pegged at $1.3697.
The euro slid 0.31 per cent to US$1.1705. The British pound declined 0.25 per cent to US$1.3507.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.469 per cent.
Economic news
Japan’s bank lending
Euro zone’s GDP and industrial production
8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. PPI for April. The Street expects a month-over-month increase of 0.5 per cent and year-over-year gain of 4.8 per cent.
1:30 p.m. ET: Bank of Canada’s summary of deliberations from April 29 decision is released.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press