Equities
Global markets were mixed amid growing optimism about a potential peace deal to end the war in Ukraine, but as investors eyed stubbornly high U.S. inflation data.
Wall Street main markets opened higher as data showed the U.S. producer price index increased solidly in January. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.13 per cent to 44,425.94, the S&P 500 gained 0.14 per cent to 60,60.59, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.24 per cent to 19,696.918 at the bell.
PPI rose 0.4 per cent last month, compared to consensus estimates of 0.3 per cent. In the 12 months through January, the PPI advanced 3.5 per cent, in line with expectations.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index opened 0.12 higher at 25,594.30, tracking moves on the Wall Street.
In Canada, investors are getting results from Canadian Tire Corp., Telus Corp., Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., Brookfield Corp. and Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd.
Canadian Tire saw improved customer sentiment in the fourth quarter that helped fuel sales growth, but reported revenue that fell short of analysts’ forecasts.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Airbnb Inc., Deere & Co. and Applied Materials Inc.
“Risks are now skewing toward the Fed delivering no cuts this year, and we are putting somewhat more weight on off-baseline scenarios where rate hikes enter the conversation,” analysts at Barclays said in a note to clients.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.75 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 dropped 0.53 per cent, Germany’s DAX advanced 1.53 per cent and France’s CAC 40 rose 1.32 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.28 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.2 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices eased as the potential peace deal to end the war in Ukraine continued to exert downward pressure, along with rising crude inventories in the United States.
Brent futures were down 1.2 per cent at US$74.31 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped 1.28 per cent to US$70.48.
ANZ analysts said that oil prices declined on news of the potential peace talks because of “optimism that risks to crude oil supplies would ease,” pointing to U.S. and EU sanctions.
“Signs of tightening supply have been pushing up oil prices in recent weeks,” they said. “U.S. sanctions on Russian oil companies and vessels are said to have exacerbated the situation.”
In other commodities, spot gold added 0.3 per cent to trade at US$2,913.38 an ounce. U.S. gold futures firmed 0.4 per cent to US$2,940.90.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 69.87 US cents to 70.15 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.72 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, declined 0.14 per cent to 107.78.
The euro rose 0.07 per cent to US$1.0391. The British pound climbed 0.18 per cent to US$1.2467.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.602 per cent.
Corporate news
Telus Corp. has reported its fourth-quarter profit and revenue rose compared with a year ago.
Trading platform Robinhood has reported record fourth-quarter revenue and profit on the back of a resurgence in retail trading due to renewed interest in crypto and equity markets, sending its shares 16 per cent higher in premarket trading.
Deere & Co. has recorded a lower first-quarter profit, as more farmers switched to renting tractors and other equipment due to weak incomes and high borrowing rates.
Economic news
ECB economic bulletin is released
Euro zone industrial production
Germany CPI
U.K. GDP, industrial production and trade deficit
(8:30 a.m. ET) Canada’s construction investment for December.
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. initial jobless claims for week of Feb. 8, which declined, suggesting the labor market remained stable early in the month. Initial claims fell 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 213,000, compared with an estimated 216,000.
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. PPI final demand (and revisions) for January.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press