Futures for Canada's main stock index edged lower on Wednesday, as investors cautiously awaited key U.S. economic data releases, wrapping up a turbulent month dominated by U.S. trade policy.
The TSX Composite Index gained 75.89 points to conclude Tuesday at 24,874.48
June futures were off 0.3% Wednesday.
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.05 cents to 72.28 cents U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump signed a pair of orders to soften the blow of his auto tariffs on Tuesday, offering credits and relief from other levies on materials, while his trade team touted its first deal with a foreign trading partner.
However, the 25% tariffs on the eight million imported vehicles will remain in effect.
Prime Minister Mark Carney's Liberal Party, which retained power in Monday's election, has promised to support the economy in a trade war through increased spending, including on infrastructure.
Statistics Canada reported Wednesday morning gross domestic product was down 0.2% in February, driven by decreases in both goods-producing and services-producing industries.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 1.63 points Tuesday to 654.81.
ON WALLSTREET
Stock futures tied to the S&P 500 were slightly lower early Wednesday as traders prepared for a blast of economic data to wrap up a tumultuous month of trading.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials forged ahead 70 points, or 0.2% to 40,728.
Futures for the broader index were down 5.61 points to 5,578.25
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite fell 51.75 points, or 0.3%, to 19,590.25.
Investors will be watching for key earnings reports from Meta Platforms and Microsoft, due in the afternoon.
The major averages ended Tuesday higher after Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick informed the media that the White House was close to announcing a trade deal, but didn’t name the country. Later in the afternoon, President Donald Trump said that tariff negotiations with India are “coming along great” and that the U.S. could soon strike an agreement with the nation.
April has been a rocky month for markets. Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal” tariff announcement on April 2 set off a bout of volatile trading, but the major averages have been gradually narrowing the month’s losses.
Consider that the S&P 500 briefly entered a bear market on April 7 but has since made a comeback, and is down just 0.9% this month. The Dow is on pace for a 3.5% loss in April, while the NASDAQ is about 0.9% higher.
In Japan resumed trading Wednesday after a Tuesday holiday, with the Nikkei 225 gaining 0.6%, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng edged up 0.5%.
Oil prices slid 51 cents to $59.91 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices faltered $48.50 to $3,285.20 U.S. an ounce.
