Equities
Global markets were mixed amid cautious trading as investors eyed U.S. inflation figures while Chinese stocks clawed back some of yesterday’s losses.
Wall Street’s main indexes fell at the open, after data showed U.S. inflation was higher than expected in September, keeping the Federal Reserve on track to ease interest rates by 25 basis points at its next meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.14 per cent to 42,446.37, the S&P 500 dropped 0.24 per cent to 5,778.36, and the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.50 per cent to 18,200.618 at the bell.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index opened 0.07 per cent lower at 24,208.56, weighed down in part by a drop in Toronto-Dominion Bank after reports of U.S. regulatory penalties.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Aritzia Inc. after the closing bell.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Delta Air Lines Inc. Domino’s Pizza Inc and Richelieu Hardware Ltd.
With U.S. inflation data, “at stake is whether we get one or two more Fed cuts this year, or even none at all,” said Kenneth Broux, head of corporate research FX and rates at Societe Generale.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.23 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 advanced 0.06 per cent, Germany’s DAX declined 0.19 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.35 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.26 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose almost 3 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices rose more than 1 per cent, underpinned by a spike in fuel demand as a major storm barrelled into Florida, with Middle East supply risks also in focus.
Brent crude futures gained 1.8 per cent to US$78 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 1.7 per cent at US$74.44 a barrel.
“Without a genuine demand excess or supply shortage, the risk will remain skewed to the downside,” said Tamas Varga at oil broker PVM. Even if there is an Israeli assault on Iranian oil infrastructure, “the price reaction could be brief, albeit violent.”
In other commodities, spot gold rose 0.2 per cent to US$2,613 an ounce, after easing for the previous six sessions. U.S. gold futures advanced 0.2 per cent to US$2,632.30.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 72.69 US cents to 73.02 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 1.19 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, fell 0.14 per cent to 102.78.
The euro slid 0.03 per cent to US$1.0938. The British pound gained 0.02 per cent to US$1.3074.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.080 per cent.
Other business news
The Japanese parent of 7-Eleven today said it will shed much of its non-convenience business and refocus on its core brand, as Seven & i Holdings seeks to stave off an increasingly aggressive takeover effort by Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc.
Delta Air Lines has forecast quarterly revenue largely below expectations in anticipation of slower travel spending against the backdrop of the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
Domino’s Pizza has posted a smaller-than-expected rise in third-quarter U.S. same-store sales as consumers curbed spending on dining out.
Ratan Tata, the former Tata Group chairman who put a staid and sprawling Indian conglomerate on the global stage with a string of high-profile acquisitions, has died. He was 86.
Economic news
Japan bank lending
Germany retail sales
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. initial jobless claims for week of Oct. 5, which were 258,000, versus an estimate of 230,000.
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. CPI for September. The U.S. consumer price Index rose an annualized 2.4 per cent in September, compared with an estimate of a 2.3 per cent rise.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press