Canada's main stock index looked set to open higher on speculation that Germany will provide more flexibility to use European bailout funds and as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi kept the door open to further interest rate cuts.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index finished 25.29 points below breakeven Monday to 11,634.67. Canada stock futures traded up 0.4%
The Canadian dollar eked up 0.08 cents to 98.18 U.S. early Tuesday.
Among stocks to watch this morning, Latvia-based Air Baltic Corp has signed a letter of intent to buy 10 CS300 aircraft from Bombardier worth $764 million at list prices, the two firms said at the Farnborough Airshow on Tuesday.
A delay in the launch of the new generation of BlackBerrys by Research In Motion until next year will give retailers more time to focus on the revamped smartphones once they hit store shelves, RIM's new marketing chief said on Monday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange poked ahead 0.63 points to 1,211.98. The Nasdaq Canada index fell 6.47 points to 350.42.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks were poised to open higher Tuesday after euro-zone finance ministers agree to accelerate an initial bailout for ailing Spanish banks.
Futures for the Dow Jones grew 37 points, or 0.3%, to 12,722, about 30 minutes before the opening bell. Futures for the S&P 500 nosed up 1.3 points, or 0.1%, to 1,350.50, and for the Nasdaq, futures gained 3.75 points, or 0.1%, to 2,609.75.
U.S. stocks ended lower Monday, as investors remained wary ahead of quarterly corporate results.
Aluminum producer Alcoa marked the unofficial beginning of second-quarter earnings season Monday, when it released results after the bell that were roughly in line with analysts expectations.
Results are due later in the week from banking giants JPMorgan and Wells Fargo
Overall, analysts are expecting underwhelming corporate results, with earnings dropping off compared to the first quarter.
Late Monday, euro-zone finance ministers agreed that Spain would be offered an initial €30 billion by the end of the month to help bail out its troubled banks. The move is aimed at helping the euro-zone's fourth-largest economy from needing a full bailout itself.
But worries remain, according to some experts
Yields for the 10-year Spanish bond slid to 6.83% following the euro-zone announcement. Yields have been recently bouncing above the 7% mark, which heightens bailout worries.
More signs of a global economic deceleration came from China, which reported worsening year-over-year import growth early Tuesday. June came in at 6.3%, half of May's 12.7%, pointing to weak demand.
European stocks were higher in morning trading. Britain's FTSE 100 added 1%, the DAX in Germany gained 1.5% and France's CAC 40 rose 1.2%.
Asian markets closed lower. The Shanghai Composite fell 0.3%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 0.2% and Japan's Nikkei lost 0.4%.
Oil for August delivery fell 83 cents to $85.16 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for August delivery rose $3.50 to $1,592.60 U.S. an ounce.
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