Canada's main stock index showed some strength at the open on Tuesday as technology stocks fell, while a softer-than-expected domestic consumer price inflation in September trimmed bets of another rate hike by Bank of Canada next week.
The TSX Composite gained 44.34 points to open Tuesday at 19,665.14.
The Canadian dollar wilted 0.31 cents at 73.14 cents U.S.
In corporate news, Brookfield, through its affiliate Brookfield Reinsurance, is considering entering Britain's pension insurance industry and is open to an acquisition. Brookfield began trading down 32 cents to $44.34.
It’s a busy economic calendar Tuesday, with the consumer price index rose 3.8% on a year-over-year basis in September, following a 4.0% increase in August. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.2% in September. Statistics Canada also says Canadian investors acquired $14.9 billion of foreign securities in August, the largest investment since April 2022. Meanwhile, non-resident investors reduced their exposure to Canadian securities by $8.5 billion, the first divestment since March 2023.
Lastly, August new motor vehicle sales totaled 158,500, compared to 147,400 in the prior-year month.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange eked up 0.02 points to begin Tuesday at 533.40.
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups gained ground, led by gold, ahead 1.7%, materials, up 1.3%, and consumer discretionary stocks, better by 0.5%.
The five laggards were weighed most heavily by consumer staples, sliding 0.3%, while information technology fell 0.2%, and financials, off 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks slid on Tuesday, as rising bond yields once again weighed on investors and the third-quarter earnings season gained steam.
The Dow Jones Industrials slumped 113.75 points to begin Tuesday at 33,870.79.
The S&P 500 index dished off 33.8 points to 4,339.83.
The NASDAQ index settled 167.68 points, or 1.2%, at 13,400.31.
Bank of America climbed more than 1% after the bank beat analyst expectations in the quarter. But Goldman Sachs slid more than 1% as investors parsed the financial giant’s latest report.
Beyond financial stocks, Lockheed Martin climbed about 1.5% after exceeding consensus estimates for the quarter. Pharmaceutical stock Johnson & Johnson added nearly 1% after beating analyst expectations in the quarter and upping its full-year guidance.
Rising yields have pressured the broader market in recent weeks as traders assess the prospects of tighter Federal Reserve policy for longer than expected. Investors have also considered the potential impact from the Israel-Hamas war on the global economy.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury sagged, raising yields to 4.84% from Monday’s 4.71%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up 33 cents to $86.99 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices prospered $6.70 to $1,941.00.
