The Before the Bell report is updated throughout the morning to reflect latest developments. Colin Cieszynski will return.
North American stock futures are modestly lower this morning, suggesting the recent resurgence in equity values from the depths of investor pessimism in mid-January may take a pause.
S&P 500 futures are down about 0.3 per cent, even as crude oil gains as much as 2 per cent. U.S. stocks appear set to take a break from what has amounted to more than three weeks of steady gains. The S&P 500 index closed on Friday just shy of the 2,000-mark at 1,999.99, which represents a 9.3 per cent gain from a Feb. 11 trough.
Canada's main stock index was also poised to open lower after scaling a new high for 2016 on Friday and a 3.2-per-cent gain over the week. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index rose on Friday as resource stocks tracked commodity prices higher and after data showed a better-than-expected U.S. jobs gain and record Canadian exports.
Overnight in Asia, stock markets in mainland China rose after Prime Minister Li Keqiang spelled out on Saturday a new five-year economic plan, which included an average growth target of 6.5 per cent to 7 per cent and a moderate increase in the fiscal deficit to 3 per cent of GDP this year.
With U.S. stocks and crude oil starting the week on divergent paths, the energy market's hold on investor sentiment appears to have relaxed, at least temporarily.
There's no doubting crude's influence over markets through the volatility of the last several months. Investors have seemed to ignore the positive effects cheap oil has historically bestowed on the global economy in favour of taking the oil correction as an additional indicator of fundamental weakness.
The United Arab Emirates' energy minister lent confidence to the recovering global energy market, speaking on Monday of an ongoing "balancing" of the market. Energy bears are in retreat, with hedge funds unwinding short positions at the fastest pace since last April, according to Bloomberg. Meanwhile, the Baker Hughes rig count has fallen to its lowest level since late 2009, bringing long-awaited production cuts further into focus.
Optimism on the energy front was not enough for European investors, however, after data released on Monday showed German factory orders declining slightly in January. Economic frailty will be among the issues considered by the European Central Bank at a meeting on Thursday, when it is expected to further cut rates and add to stimulus measures.
But the Bank for International Settlements cast doubt over the effectiveness of monetary stimulus in its quarterly review, which was released Sunday. With signs of credit stress building over the last quarter, the bank said the world's central bankers are running out of policy options to fend off the kind of volatility that has gripped markets at times this year.
No major economic data are scheduled for today, which could mean a relatively quiet day of trading. Here's a closer look at key market data and corporate news.
MARKET DATA:
Futures
S&P 500 -0.3 per cent; Dow -0.2 per cent; Nasdaq: -0.4 per cent; TSX 60 -0.3 per cent
Equities
Hong Kong's Hang Seng -0.08 per cent per cent
Shanghai composite index +0.85 per cent
Japan's Nikkei 225 -0.61 per cent
London's FTSE -1.01 per cent
Germany's DAX -0.87 per cent
France's CAC 40 -0.86 per cent
Commodities
WTI crude oil (Nymex April) +1.81 per cent at $36.57 (U.S.) a barrel
Gold (Comex April) +0.02 per cent at $1,270.90 (U.S.) an ounce
Copper (Comex May) -0.29 per cent at $2.268 (U.S.) a pound
Currencies
Canadian dollar -0.0017 at 74.82 cents (U.S.)
U.S. dollar index +0.250 at 97.590
Bonds
U.S. 10-year Treasury yield +0.03 at 1.91 per cent
KEY ECONOMIC RELEASES
No major reports scheduled.
KEY CORPORATE NEWS
Earnings include: Cargojet Inc.; Caseys General Stores Inc.; Chinook Energy Inc.; Pizza Pizza Royalty Corp.; Raging River Exploration Inc.; Redline Communications Group Inc.; Savanna Energy Services Corp.; Sprott Resource Corp.; Tourmaline Oil Corp.; United Natural Foods Inc.; Urban Outfitters Inc.; Zargon Oil & Gas Ltd.
Also see: Monday's small-cap stocks to watch
With files from wire services
Tim Shufelt