Equities
Global stocks were higher as investors digested the potential effects of the U.S. government shutdown that entered its second day on Thursday.
Wall Street and TSX futures were up.
A drawn-out government shutdown in the U.S. could delay the release of key economic data, including a monthly payrolls report that had been expected on Friday.
In absence of that data, traders put more stock in a private U.S. labour market report that showed the economy unexpectedly shed jobs in September, bolstering bets on Federal Reserve rate cuts to come.
“I hope they sort this out rapidly,” Kevin Thozet, investment committee member at asset manager Carmignac, said of the government shutdown.
“It’s like a blind man walking with a blind dog,” he said.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.8 per cent in afternoon trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was flat, Germany’s DAX rose 1.38 per cent and France’s CAC 40 was up 1.38 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.87 per cent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.61 per cent.
Commodities
Oil prices were lower on concerns about oversupply in the market.
Brent crude futures fell 0.4 per cent to US$65.09 a barrel and =West Texas Intermediate crude also dipped 0.4 per cent to US$61.54 a barrel.
In other commodities, gold was last up 0.4 per cent at US$3,880 as shutdown angst pushed the metal higher.
Currencies and bonds
The Canadian dollar weakened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.68 US cents to 71.77 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 0.85 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, lost 0.14 per cent to 97.57.
The euro gained 0.22 per cent to US$1.1758. The British pound gained 0.03 per cent to US$1.348.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was flat at 4.108 per cent.
Economic news
Japan consumer confidence
Euro zone jobless rate
(1:25 p.m. ET) Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Rhys Mendes speaks at the Ivey Business School in London, Ont.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press
