Luke KawaThe Globe and Mail
The Before the Bell report is updated throughout the premarket to reflect the latest news developments and market moves. Check back later for updates.
U.S. equity futures are sinking ahead of the open, with markets poised to give back some of Monday's large gains, as traders book profits and react to weakness this morning in European stocks. S&P/TSX 60 futures are also well in negative territory.
Data released overnight demonstrate that although the euro area has surprised to the upside this year, there is much progress left to be made. For March, a preliminary reading indicated that core inflation was up 0.6 per cent year-over-year, while the unemployment rate ticked down to 11.3 per cent.
Greece and its creditors, meanwhile, continue to remain far apart in talks. "The Greek government and the Brussels group failed to agree on a precise and concrete list of reforms yesterday (hinted as a deadline after the last EU summit)," wrote Barclays' European economics team. "Besides the reported lack of detail about the current proposals (in terms of impact on the budget), the Brussels group reportedly pointed to a lack of items on pension, labour market and VAT reforms."
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom's fourth-quarter growth was revised a tick higher to 0.6 per cent quarter-over-quarter.
Key for North American stock markets today: Two voting members of the Federal Open Market Committee, Jeffrey Lacker and Dennis Lockhart, are scheduled to deliver speeches this morning. And the U.S. Case-Shiller Home Price Index for January is also due out at 9:00 a.m. ET.
China's Shanghai Composite index retreated on Tuesday following Monday's robust advance after comments from central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan suggesting additional monetary stimulus is in the offing gave equity markets around the world a lift.
After a volatile session to open the week, West Texas Intermediate futures continue to fade, as a possible nuclear deal with Iran draws closer, falling below $48 per barrel (U.S.)
The Canadian dollar, which was lingering near a six-year low against the U.S. greenback, caught a bid after Statistics Canada reported that the economy contracted by 0.1 per cent in January, a smaller decline than economists had expected.
Here's a look at the latest market numbers and other highlights ahead of the trading day.
Futures:
S&P 500 -0.58 per cent; Dow -0.55 per cent; Nasdaq -0.51 per cent
Equities:
Hong Kong's Hang Seng +0.09 per cent
Shanghai composite index -1.02 per cent
Japan's Nikkei -1.05 per cent
London's FTSE 100 -1.08 per cent
Germany's DAX -0.94 per cent
France's CAC 40 -0.59 per cent
Stoxx 600 -0.47 per cent
Commodities:
WTI crude oil (Nymex May) -1.93 per cent at $47.74 (U.S.) a barrel
Natural gas (Nymex May) +0.19 per cent at $2.649
Gold (Comex Apr) -0.09 per cent at $1,184.20 (U.S.) an ounce
Copper (Comex May) -1.44 per cent at $2.7425 (U.S.) a pound
Currencies:
Canadian dollar at 78.57 (U.S.), down 0.0029
U.S. dollar index up 0.456 at 98.431
Bonds:
U.S. 10-year Treasury yield 1.944 per cent, down 0.0035
ECONOMIC INDICATORS:
Canadian GDP for January fell 0.1 per cent from December, vs. the consensus estimate of a decline of 0.2 per cent.
U.S. S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index rose 4.6 per cent year-over-year in January, in line with the consensus estimate.
(9:45 a.m. ET) U.S. Chicago PMI. Consensus is 52.0 for March, up from 45.8 in February.
(10 a.m. ET) U.S. Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index. Consensus is 96.5 in March, up from 96.4 in February.
STOCKS TO WATCH:
Amaya Inc. posted fourth quarter adjusted earnings and sales below analysts' estimates. The online gaming firm sees revenues in 2015 ranging from $1.62 to 1.74-billion. The lower end of that range is in line with the consensus estimate. Management indicated that it was targeting pro forma adjusted earnings per share of $1.77 to $2.00.
Teck Resources Inc. holds an investor and analyst day in Toronto. On Monday, reports surfaced that the company is in talks to merge with Antofagasta Plc, though both firms denied that they are in negotiations. Shares closed up 10 per cent Monday but in the U.S. premarket are down 7 per cent this morning.
Eldorado Gold Corp. is facing allegations that it used "mailbox companies" in the Netherlands to avoid taxes that otherwise would have been paid to the Greek government, according to a report by the Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations.
Bank of Montreal holds its annual general meeting today.
International Business Machines Corp. will invest $3-billion over the next four years on an "Internet of Things" business unit designed to aid companies in gathering, storing, and analyzing data.
McDonald's Corp. said it will test all-day breakfast at certain locations in San Diego beginning in April.
Other earnings today include: Gran Colombia, NovaGold, Vicwest, Conn's Inc., Freshpet Inc., Quest Resource, SYNNEX Corp., Team Inc., Vertex Energy Inc.
ANALYST ACTIONS:
Late Monday, Citibank upgraded both Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank to "buy" from "neutral." Analyst Stefan Nedialkov also raised his price target on Royal Bank to $86 (Canadian) from $83, and on TD to $62 (Canadian) from $59.
Raymond James downgraded WSP Global Inc. to "outperform" from "strong buy." It also raised its price target to $48 (Canadian) from $46.
Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Priceline Group to "buy" from "hold" and set a stock price target of $1,400 (U.S.).