Stocks on this side of the border looked set to open little changed on Wednesday, with the Bank of Canada expected to keep interest rates unchanged.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 53.17 points to end Tuesday at 14,733.93, with futures flat Wednesday.
The Canadian dollar slid 0.20 cents at 91.49 U.S. early Wednesday.
Pent-up demand helped drive Canadian auto sales to a monthly record in May, with mass market brands and niche automakers both big winners, an independent auto industry analyst said on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the appointment of a Quebec judge to the Supreme Court of Canada on Tuesday after the top court rejected his previous appointment earlier this year in a high-profile case.
Deutsche Lufthansa AG said on Tuesday that it met with Bombardier Inc on Monday and assured the Canadian plane maker it still believes in the $4.4-billion CSeries jetliner program despite an engine failure last week.
BMO raised the rating on Canadian Pacific Railway to outperform from market perform
Salman Partners initiated coverage on Brazil Resources with a speculative buy rating
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported this morning that our merchandise exports declined 1.8% with imports hiking 1.4% in April. As a result, Canada's trade balance with the world went from a surplus of $766 million in March to a deficit of $638 million in April.
The Bank of Canada decision on interest rates is due later this morning (10 a.m. ET). The central bank is expected to hold its key rate at 1% and show no sign of changing its neutral stance, even though inflation has jumped to its 2% target sooner than expected.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange remained positive 3.55 points Tuesday to 982.02.
ON WALLSTREET
Markets are preparing for two big economic events later in the week, so trading across the globe may be muted Wednesday.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials subsided seven points to 16,706. Futures for the S&P 500 fell 4.3 points, or 0.2%, at 1,917.80, and futures for the NASDAQ ducked back 9.75 points, or 0.3%, to 3,721.
Investors and traders are sitting on their hands as they wait for a highly-anticipated monetary policy announcement from the European Central Bank on Thursday, and U.S. employment numbers on Friday.
On the earnings front, Brown-Forman, the maker of Jack Daniel's whiskey, will report quarterly earnings before the opening bell. The stock is among the top 10% of S&P 500 companies this year and its earnings results could help propel the stock higher, or bring it back down to earth.
On the domestic economic slate, the ADP May jobs report will come out this morning and the U.S. government will publish its monthly trade balance. At 2 p.m., the Federal Reserve will release its Beige Book, which provides details about the economy at the regional level.
The ECB is widely expected to cut interest rates, and could announce other stimulus measures, to prevent low inflation from derailing the fitful euro-zone economic recovery.
On Friday, the U.S. jobs report for May is coming out, giving a picture about the state of the employment market in the world's biggest economy.
Trading in European markets was weak, with major indexes slipping in midday trading.
Asian markets mostly ended with losses, though the Nikkei 225 in Japan edged up.
Oil prices took on 64 cents to $103.30 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices inched up $1.10 to $1,245.60 U.S. an ounce.
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