Stock futures for Canada's main index edged down on Monday, as oil prices slipped on concern about the outlook for demand amid global economic slowdown.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index slouched 206.10 points, or 1.5%, to end Friday and the week at 13,935.67
The Canadian dollar eked higher 0.08 cents at 73.63 U.S. early Monday
March futures fell 0.1% Monday.
Markets in Canada are to close down 1 p.m. ET, and remain shut Christmas Day and Boxing Day, to resume trading on Thursday.
China accused Britain and the European Union of hypocrisy on Monday for expressing concern about China's detention of two Canadian citizens, saying they had double standards for not mentioning a senior Chinese executive arrested in Canada.
H.C. Wainwright cut the target price on Gogold Resources to $0.90 from $1.20
Raymond James cut the target price on Nexgen Energy to $5.25 from $5.50
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange jettisoned 7.65 points, or 1.4%, Friday to 529.36
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures pointed to a lower open on Monday following a brutal week that pushed the S&P 500 to the brink of a bear market.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average sagged 129 points, or 0.6%, to 22,278
Futures for the S&P 500 faded 11.75 points, or 0.5%, to 2,401.75,
NASDAQ futures dropped 25.25 points, or 0.4%, to 6,033.75.
The Dow lost 1,655 points, or 6.8%, last week. That was the Dow’s worst week of trading since October 2008 during the financial crisis.
The S&P 500 also lost 7% for the week and is now down 17.8% from its record reached earlier in the year, putting it on the brink of a bear market.
The NASDAQ is now 22% below its record reached in August and is in a bear market.
Both the Dow and the S&P 500 are now in the red for 2018 by at least 9%. Some traders have suggested that the market has gotten to the point where a short-term bounce could occur, if only for technical reasons. Seasonally, this is usually a positive, or at least benign, time for the markets.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin held calls on Sunday with the heads of the six largest U.S. banks in order to reassure nervous investors that the financial markets and economy were functioning properly.
Like markets in Canada, indexes in the U.S. are closed early today and all of Christmas. Unlike in Canada, Wednesday through Friday are normal trading days.
Overseas, in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index dipped 0.4%, while in Japan, markets were shuttered for public holiday.
Oil prices faded 66 cents to $44.93 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices took on $7.40 to $1,265.50 U.S. an ounce.
