Equities
Global markets edged lower as investors shifted focus away from politics toward corporate earnings later in the week and on expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve would slow its pace of interest rate cuts.
Wall Street’s main indexes opened little changed, as investors looked ahead to crucial corporate results, especially from AI-chip leader Nvidia, following Wall Street’s slump the previous week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.03 per cent to 43,431.89, the S&P 500 rose 0.06 per cent to 5,874.17, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.2 per cent to 18,717.933 at the bell.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index opened 0.23 higher at 24,948.53, lifted by mining shares, while markets looked to the next inflation data release tomorrow.
“This week, attention shifts from politics and economic data to earnings. Big names like Walmart, Target and, yes, Nvidia will be reporting their Q3 earnings this week,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank, wrote in a note.
“The big retailers will shed light on the health of U.S. consumers, while Nvidia is expected to deliver a strong beat and an upbeat outlook, fuelled by ‘insane demand’ for its Blackwell chips.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.48 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was flat, Germany’s DAX slid 0.36 per cent and France’s CAC 40 retreated 0.31 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.09 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.77 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices inched up after fighting between Russia and Ukraine intensified over the weekend, although concerns about fuel demand in China, the world’s second-largest consumer, and forecasts of a global oil surplus weighed on markets.
Brent crude futures gained 0.8 per cent to US$71.66 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at US$67.52 a barrel, up 0.75 per cent.
U.S. President Joe Biden “allowing Ukraine to strike Russian forces around Kursk with long-range missiles might see a geopolitical bid come back into oil as it is an escalation of tensions there, in response to North Korean troops entering the fray,” IG markets analyst Tony Sycamore said.
In other commodities, gold rebounded after sharp losses last week. Spot gold rose 1.2 per cent to US$2,591.43 an ounce. U.S. gold futures were up 1 per cent at US$2,595.80.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 70.89 US cents to 71.07 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 1.8 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
‘Trump trade’ sees loonie fall to four-year low against U.S. dollar
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, declined 0.14 per cent to 106.55.
The euro gained 0.27 per cent to US$1.0569. The British pound advanced 0.07 per cent to US$1.2627.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.458 per cent.
Other corporate news
Spirit Airlines has filed for bankruptcy protection after the U.S. no-frills carrier struggled with a long run of quarterly losses and significant debt, it disclosed today.
Manulife Financial chief executive officer Roy Gori will retire on May 8, 2025, the insurer says, and will be succeeded by Phil Witherington, who is currently the CEO of Manulife Asia.
Economic news
Japan core machine orders
Euro zone trade surplus
(8:15 a.m. ET) Canadian housing starts for October, which rose an annualized 8 per cent.
(8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s international securities transactions for September.
(10 a.m. ET) U.S. NAHB Housing Market Index for November.
Also: G20 leaders’ summit in Rio de Janeiro (through Tuesday).
With Reuters and The Canadian Press