Equities
Asian and European stocks were mostly lower amid volatile trading in the wake of Monday’s global stock selloff.
Wall Street’s main indexes opened higher, bolstered by better-than-expected labour market data that eased worries of a slowdown in the world’s largest economy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.46 per cent to 38,940.38, the S&P 500 gained 1.02 per cent to 5,252.57, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.31 per cent to 16,408.265.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index opened 0.52 per cent higher at 21,994.59, boosted by consumer discretionary stocks amid broader gains.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd., Maple Leaf Foods Inc., Power Corp. of Canada, Onex Corp., Quebecor Inc., Premium Brands Holdings Corp. and Restaurant Brands International Inc.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Eli Lilly and Co.
“When you have a volatility shock like this, and you have a degree of unwind in certain positions, you’re very prone to sudden reversals and also a degree of uneasiness as the adjustment continues,” said Erik Nelson, macro strategist at Wells Fargo.
“I would be surprised if we just went back to everything being fine.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.93 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.77 per cent, Germany’s DAX slid 0.67 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 1.12 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed down 0.74 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was flat.
Commodities
Oil prices held steady after two sessions of gains, with growing supply risks in the Middle East offsetting demand concerns that had pushed prices to their lowest since early 2024 at the start of the week.
Brent crude futures fell 0.1 per cent to US$78.25 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lost 0.03 per cent to US$75.25.
In other commodities, gold prices gained, snapping five sessions of losses, as Middle East tensions and optimism surrounding U.S. rate outlook supported safe-haven bullion.
Spot gold was up 1.2 per cent at US$2,410.69 an ounce, while U.S. gold futures were up 0.7 per cent at US$2,450.40.
Analysis: A commodity rout is brewing, and Canada will be at the centre of any fallout
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. dollar counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 72.65 US cents to 72.86 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 0.51 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, turned higher to 103.21 on the jobs data, after hitting an eight-month low of 102.69 on Monday.
The euro advanced 0.02 per cent to US$1.0925. The British pound dropped 0.1 per cent to US$1.268.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last ip at 3.988 per cent, after rising yesterday following a weak debt auction.
Other corporate news
Canadian Tire has reported second-quarter profit rose compared with a year ago as its revenue edged lower with shoppers continuing to prioritize essential spending.
Restaurant Brands International beat Wall Street expectations for second-quarter revenue, as its Tim Hortons and Burger King outlets enjoyed steady demand despite a wider slowdown in the U.S. fast-food sector.
Eli Lilly has raised its annual profit forecast and sales of its popular weight-loss drug Zepbound crossed $1-billion for the first time in a quarter, as the company released its latest results.
Economic news
Japan bank lending
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. initial jobless claims from week of Aug. 3. came in at 233,000 compared with the 240,000 estimate.
(10 a.m. ET) U.S. wholesale trade for June. Estimate is a gain of 0.4 per cent from May.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press