Futures for Canada's main stock index steadied on Wednesday as investors were cautious ahead of domestic consumer price data due later in the day.
The TSX Composite wilted 113.16 points, to finish Tuesday at 20,553.25
The Canadian dollar eked higher 0.01 cents Wednesday to 78.80 cents U.S.
September futures inched up 0.02% Wednesday.
Canadian National Railway has informed Kansas City Southern it was unlikely to make a new offer ahead of a Friday deadline to beat Canadian Pacific Railway‘s offer.
Eight Capital initiates coverage on Field Trip Health with a buy rating and $10.20 price target.
National Bank of Canada initiates coverage on H2O Innovation with an outperform rating and a price target of $3.25.
ATB Capital Markets initiates coverage on Tidewater Renewables with am outperform rating, and a $22.00 price target.
On the economic chart, Statistics Canada said the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4.1% on a year-over-year basis in August, up from a 3.7% gain in July.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI rose 0.4% in August.
Moreover, the Canadian Real Estate Association was expected MLS home sales for the month of August.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange collapsed 5.07 points Tuesday to 897.40.
ON WALLSTREET
Futures contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average turned negative Wednesday after the blue chip index dropped nearly 300 points on Tuesday, the latest in a string of negative trading sessions this September.
Futures for the 30-stock index lost 10 points to 34,454.
Futures for the S&P 500 inched up 3.75 points, or 0.1%, to 4,438.50.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite Index heightened 25.75 points, or 0.2%, to 15,405.50.
Markets have been in a funk so far this month amid rising investor worries about the delta variant derailing the economic recovery, along with hand-wringing over the next action by the Federal Reserve.
The S&P 500 closed Tuesday at the lowest since Aug. 20. Tuesday marked the fifth straight day of losses for the NASDAQ. The Dow and S&P 500 indexes have been in the red for six of the last seven days.
September has historically been a down month for the markets, which have seen an average decline of 0.56% in the month since 1945, according to CFRA. And after eight months of straight gains, strategists say a major pullback could be imminent.
For September, the Dow is off by more than 2% and the S&P 500 is off 1.8%. The S&P 500 is on track to see its worth monthly performance since October 2020.
Microsoft shares gained more than 1% in pre-market trading after announcing a dividend increase and a sizable $60 billion share repurchase program.
Energy stocks, which have been popular bets among investors banking on a big economic recovery, gained in pre-market trading as WTI crude topped $71. Exxon added about 1%.
Apple shares rebounded slightly in premarket trading after the shares fell Tuesday after the unveiling of a new iPhone and other products.
Casino stocks like Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts traded in the red again in the premarket. Those names took a big hit Tuesday as the government of Macau looks to increase regulatory scrutiny over casinos and Chinese health authorities reported a Covid-19 outbreak.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 index hesitated 0.5% Wednesday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index faltered 1.8%.
Oil prices gained 95 cents to $71.41 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dipped $3.50 to $1,803.60 U.S. a pound.
