Global markets were tentative after U.S. President Donald Trump said he had made a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping on rare earths and tariffs.
Wall Street futures were in negative territory ahead of more Big Tech earnings and after U.S. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell said another interest-rate cut in December was far from assured.
TSX futures pointed lower after the Bank of Canada also cautioned that yesterday’s rate cut could be its last move of the current easing cycle.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Restaurant Brands International Inc., TFI International Inc. and Eldorado Gold Corp.
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On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Apple Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Eli Lilly & Co., Mastercard Inc., Merck & Co. Inc., Gilead Sciences Inc., Altria Group, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Fox Corp., Comcast, Hershey Co. and Kimberly-Clark Corp.
“The meeting represents a tactical pause or temporary de-escalation, rather than a structural breakthrough,” said Masahiko Loo, senior fixed income strategist at State Street Investment Management in Tokyo.
“A shift in tone, particularly from Trump, could quickly reignite tariff threats and trigger risk-off sentiment,” he added.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.1 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.53 per cent, Germany’s DAX climbed 0.29 per cent and France’s CAC 40 was flat.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.03 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.24 per cent.
Oil prices eased despite Trump saying he would lower tariffs on China after his meeting with Xi amid skepticism it marked an end to the trade war.
Brent crude futures fell 0.5 per cent to US$64.62 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped 0.33 per cent to US$60.28.
“The market can now see it for what it is, sans all the build-up and political window-dressing,” said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.
“It’s nothing more than a pause in fighting and minor de-escalation that was being touted as a ‘trade deal’.”
In other commodities, spot gold rose 0.9 per cent to US$3,964.09 an ounce. U.S. gold futures for December delivery slipped 0.6 per cent to US$3,977.10 an ounce.
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.67 US cents to 77.87 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.13 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, slid 0.11 per cent to 99.11, edging back from a two-week high.
The euro rose 0.16 per cent to US$1.1620. The British pound gained 0.11 per cent to US$1.3208.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was little changed at 4.074 per cent.
*Note: Scheduled U.S. data reports may not be released if the government shutdown isn’t resolved.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets Chinese leader Xi Jinping at APEC in South Korea
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