Futures tied to Canada's main stock index rose on Wednesday as gold prices rose, while investors awaited June retail sales data for clues to the Bank of Canada's (BoC) interest rate path.
The TSX dropped 93.66 points to answer Tuesday’s closing bell at 19,691.21.
September futures picked up 0.2% Wednesday.
The Canadian dollar shed 0.13 cents to 73.67 cents U.S.
Traders are betting on a 73.07% chance for the BoC to keep interest rates unchanged at its September meeting.
Investors will also be looking out for the quarterly earnings of Canada's big banks due later this week.
Canada's big bank results are expected to highlight the challenges lenders are facing in setting aside more funds to cover potential bad loans in a tough economy that has led to a slowdown in deal-making and forced borrowers to rethink new mortgages.
Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank will kick off the earning season on Thursday.
The economic spotlight shines Wednesday morning on retail sales in this country, which in June increased 0.1% to $65.9 billion. Sales increased in three of nine subsectors and were led by increases at motor vehicle and parts dealers.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange handed back 3.1 points Tuesday to 582.24.
ON WALLSTREET
Stock futures climbed Wednesday as investors awaited quarterly results from chip giant Nvidia. Traders also tried to regain their footing following a mixed session Tuesday.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials obtained seven points to 34,351.
Futures for the S&P 500 doggedly gained two points to 4,401.25.
Futures for the NASDAQ gained seven points to 14,965.50.
Nvidia is slated to report second-quarter earnings after the bell. Analysts polled by Refinitiv expect the company to report sharp year-over-year spikes in profit and revenue for the second quarter. Nvidia is the best-performing S&P 500 stock of 2023, up more than 200%, as investors cheer the company’s AI-related prospects.
Investors will look to the report for signs on whether the market can resume this year’s move higher, or if the August downturn will be prolonged. The S&P 500 is down more than 4% this month. On Wednesday, shares rose more than 1%.
Dick’s Sporting Goods fell 24% in its worst daily performance ever after coming up short of Wall Street expectations and pulling back its full-year earnings guidance. Macy’s fell 14% after reiterating its conservative outlook, while Lowe’s climbed more than 3% after exceeding the consensus estimate of analysts for earnings and reaffirming full-year expectations.
Beyond the earnings slated for Wednesday, investors will also be watching for economic data on new home sales and purchasing. They’ll also be readying for the start of a two-day Federal Reserve symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, beginning Thursday. Fed Chair Jerome Powell is expected to deliver remarks Friday.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index was stronger 0.5% Wednesday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng was better by 0.3%.
Oil prices doffed $1.31 to $78.33 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices jumped $9.30 to $1,935.30 U.S. an ounce.
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