Canada's main stock index futures fell on Wednesday as crude prices dropped sharply after Saudi Arabia said it plans to boost oil production capacity for the first time in more than a decade.
The TSX Composite Index recovered from quadruple-point losses, to gain 443.85 points, or 3.1%, to 14,958.09
The Canadian dollar moved 0.06 cents higher early Wednesday to 72.88 cents U.S.
March futures shed 2.6% early Wednesday.
Kirkland Lake Gold will shut two gold projects in Australia's Northern Territory by the end of the month, after it deemed its operations surplus sufficient.
Brookfield Asset Management has put the $2-billion sale or potential listing of its coal export terminal in Australia on hold due to travel restrictions amid the spread of coronavirus.
RBC cut the price target on Air Canada to $46.00 from $58.00
National Bank of Canada raised the rating on Mullen Group to outperform from sector perform.
JP Morgan cut the target price on Suncor Energy to $33.00 from $43.00
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 1.59 points Tuesday to 464.74.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures fell sharply on Wednesday as investors worried about a possible fiscal stimulus package aimed at curbing slower economic growth due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials tumbled 642 points, or 2.6%, early Wednesday to 24,207.
Futures for the S&P 500 slumped 79.5 points, or 2.8%, at 2,786.25.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite dropped 212 points, on 2.5%, to 8,119.50.
The uncertainty around fiscal stimulus, coupled with a reduction in travel demand and rising coronavirus cases, pressured airline and cruise line stocks. American, Delta, United and JetBlue all fell more than 2% in the pre-market. Norwegian Cruise Line retreated 4.4%, and Carnival fell 7%.
In terms of data, there will be monthly consumer price figures at 8:30 a.m. ET and federal budget numbers are due at 2 p.m. ET.
President Donald Trump suggested Tuesday a 0% payroll tax rate that could last until the end of the year. However, the timing of such policies being implemented remains uncertain.
Trump’s comment came as the number of coronavirus cases around the world total more than 100,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. In the U.S. alone, more than 1,000 cases have been confirmed. This increase in cases added to fears of a global economic slowdown.
Central banks have also taken action to curb slower economic growth. The Bank of England on Wednesday cut its benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 0.25%.The move follows a 50 basis-point rate cut by the Federal Reserve earlier this month.
The move down in futures comes after the major averages regained a chunk of their losses on Tuesday. The Dow rallied more than 1,100 points while the S&P 500 had its best one-day performance since Dec. 26, 2018.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 tumbled 2.3% Wednesday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index forfeited 0.6%.
Oil prices sank $1.02 to $33.34 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $7.30 to $1,667.60 U.S. an ounce.
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