Futures for Canadian equities fell on Monday, as oil prices slipped on expansion of rigs by U.S. companies, signaling a further rise in crude supply.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 85.27 points to end Friday at 15,370.27 – better than 1,000 points above where it closed on New Year’s Eve.
The Canadian dollar sank 0.07 cents at 75.56 cents U.S. early Monday
March futures were off 0.4% Monday.
Fortis said on Monday it would sell its 51% stake in its hydroelectric project in British Columbia to state-owned Columbia Power and Columbia Basin Trust for about $1 billion.
Canaccord Genuity cut the rating on Belo Sun Mining to hold from speculative buy.
Credit Suisse cut the rating on Canadian Utilities to neutral from outperform.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange climbed 11.18 points, or 1.9%, Friday to 604.56
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Monday after Caterpillar’s earnings disappointed investors.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dissolved 161 points, or 0.7%, to 24,535
Futures for the S&P 500 lost 13.5 points, or 0.5%, to 2,650
NASDAQ futures dropped 38.25 points, or 0.6%, to 6,753
Caterpillar shares fell more than 3% after the industrial giant posted weaker-than-expected earnings for the fourth quarter. The company said its sales in the Asia/Pacific region declined because of lower demand in China. Caterpillar is considered a bellwether for global trade given the company’s exposure to overseas markets.
The earnings miss comes as investors brace for the busiest week of the corporate reporting season. More than 100 S&P 500 companies are scheduled to report, including Apple, Amazon and Facebook. So far, the earnings season is off to a solid start. About 70% of the companies that have already reported have beaten analyst expectations
The moves Monday also come after Congress and the Trump administration agreed to reopen the government for three weeks. The government had been shutdown for 35 days — the longest stoppage in U.S. history — as both sides could not agree on funding for a border wall. President Donald Trump told The Wall Street Journal on Sunday that another government shutdown is “certainly an option.”
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 sank 0.6% Monday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index acquired more than seven points.
Oil prices slid 90 cents to $52.79 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $1.30 to $1,299.40 U.S. an ounce.
