Despite some give on U.S. Treasury gains, Canada’s main stock index couldn’t hold onto its early gains and closed in the red. The TSX lost as much as 187 points over the course of Tuesday trading. Investors now wait key monetary policy decisions from the Bank of Canada on Wednesday. Many analysts expect the BoC will keep interest rates unchanged at 5 per cent, but inflation still sits well above its 2 per cent target and some predict future hikes are still possible.
The receding Treasury yields gave some life to U.S. stock markets after a couple of down sessions as traders focus on a fresh slate of earnings reports. The latest leg of earnings season has been better than Wall Street expected so far. Thirty per cent of S&P 500 companies will report this week.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.82 cents U.S., compared to 73.02 cents U.S. on Monday.
U.S. crude futures traded $1.72 lower at $83.77 a barrel, and the Brent contract lost $1.75 to $88.08 a barrel.
The price of gold was down US$2.20 to US$1,971.48.
In world markets, the Nikkei was up 62.80 points to 31,062.35, the Hang Seng was down 180.60 points to 16,991.53, the FTSE was up 14.87 points to 7,389.70, but the DAX was up 79.22points to 14,879.94.
The material provided in this article is for information only and should not be treated as investment advice. For full disclaimer information, please click here.