Canada's main stock index futures were lower on Wednesday as oil prices hit a 17-year low.
The TSX Composite Index plummeted 511.13 points, or 4%, to kick off Wednesday at 12,174.08
The Canadian dollar fell 0.88 cents at 69.34 cents U.S.
The Globe and Mail is reporting that Canada and the United States will announce a deal to partially close their borders on Wednesday, which will allow trade and commerce to go on.
Alimentation Couche-Tard beat quarterly revenue and profit estimates on Tuesday, helped in part by higher fuel sales in the United States. Couche-Tard stocks gained $1.20, or 3.6%, to $34.27.
CIBC cut the target price on Altagas to $19.00 from $23.00. Altagas declined 70 cents, or 5.8%, to $11.41.
CIBC cut the rating Inter Pipeline to underperform from neutral. Inter Pipeline shares shed 93 cents, or 11.2%, to $7.39.
National Bank of Canada cut the target price on Whitecap Resources to $2.50 from $4.00. Whitecap shares docked 5.5 cents, or 5.9%, to 87.5 cents.
On the economic beat, the Consumer Price Index rose 2.2% on a year-over-year basis in February, down from a 2.4% increase in January. On a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, the CPI was up 0.1% in February, matching the increase in January.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange deducted 8.11 points, or 2.2%, to 366.61.
All 12 TSX subgroups were in the red during the first hour, with energy slumping 7.1%, consumer discretionary issues slouching 6.3%, and health-care ailing 5.7%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks tumbled on Wednesday as the markets remained highly volatile with the government response to the coronavirus fallout still unfolding.
The Dow Jones Industrials erased Tuesday’s gain with a loss of 990.04 points, or 4.7 %, Wednesday morning, to 20,247.34.
The broader S&P 500 let go of 107.21 points, or 4.2%, to 2,422.73.
The NASDAQ erased 252.13 points, or 3.4%, to 7,709.84.
Wall Street has been on an unprecedented roller-coaster ride amid the coronavirus turmoil, with the S&P 500 swinging 4% or more in either direction for seven consecutive sessions through Tuesday’s close.
This tops the previous record of six days from November 1929. Stocks continued their volatile streak on Wednesday, with another drop of more than 4%. The S&P 500 is 29.5% off its record high through Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the White House was said to be weighing a fiscal package of more than $1 trillion that includes direct payments to Americans and financial relief to small businesses and the airline industry.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also said separately at a press conference that corporations will be able to defer tax payments of up to $10 million while individuals could defer up to $1 million in payments to the Internal Revenue Service
Prices for the 10-Year U.S. Treasury regained strength, lowering yields to 1.06% from Tuesday’s 1.08%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dipped $2.99 to $23.96 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices slid $19.00 to $1,506.80 U.S. an ounce.
