Before the Bell: What every Canadian investor needs to know today

Market stress ​remained high after a rout in global bonds yesterday, with investors flocking to safe-haven gold, pushing it to a new high.

Equities

Global markets extended losses as U.S. threats to ‍acquire Greenland kept investors on edge as President Donald Trump speaks in Davos.

Wall Street futures reversed course again in choppy premarket session and pointed higher.

TSX futures were in positive territory, buoyed by gold prices.

On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Johnson & Johnson, Charles Schwab Corp., Prologis Inc., TE Connectivity PLC, Kinder Morgan Inc., Halliburton Co. and Travelers Cos. Inc.

“The ‘sell America’ trade was the driving force behind major market moves overnight, as investors looked to reduce exposure to the U.S., seen by many as an unreliable partner pursuing self-defeating policies,” said Mantas Vanagas, a senior economist at Westpac.

Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.8 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.07 per cent, Germany’s DAX fell 1.38 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.57 per cent.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.41 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.37 per cent.

Commodities

Oil prices steadied as investors assessed a ​temporary shutdown at two large fields in ‍Kazakhstan, expectations of a build in U.S. crude inventories and fresh geopolitical tension tied to U.S. tariff threats in its bid to gain control of Greenland.

Brent futures gained 0.3 per cent to US$65.12 a ‍barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude climbed 0.3 per cent to trade at US$60.54 a barrel.

While inventory growth would be negative for oil prices, said Gregory Brew, senior analyst with the Eurasia Group consultancy, ⁠the potential for U.S.-Iran tensions to re-escalate would help elevate oil prices.

In other commodities, spot gold ​climbed 2.1 per cent to $4,861.91 an ounce after scaling a record US$4,887.82 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures for February delivery advanced 2 per cent to US$4,8634.80 an ounce.

Currencies and bonds

The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.

The day range on the loonie was 72.23 US cents to 72.52 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 0.86 per cent against the greenback over the past month.

The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, fell 0.21 per cent to 98.43 after suffering its biggest fall in more than a month yesterday.

The euro advanced 0.1 per cent to US$1.1738. The British pound slid 0.02 per cent to US$1.3438.

In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.302 per cent.

Economic news

8:30 a.m. ET: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

8:30 a.m. ET: Canada’s industrial product and raw materials price indexes for December.

8:30 a.m. ET: Canadian construction investment for November.

10 a.m. ET: U.S. pending home sales for December. Estimate is a month-over-month decline of 1.0 per cent.

10 a.m. ET: U.S. construction spending for October. Consensus is a month-over-month rise of 0.1 per cent.

10 a.m. ET: U.S. leading indicator for December.

With Reuters and The Canadian Press