Futures for Canada's main stock index edged higher on Wednesday, ahead of the Bank of Canada's next monetary policy decision and a key inflation reading in the United States, while a step-up in oil prices further lifted sentiment.
The TSX Composite hiked 101.48 points by Tuesday’s close to 22,361.78.
June futures were up 0.4% Wednesday.
The Canadian dollar notched higher 0.06 cents to 73.73 cents U.S.
National Bank of Canada initiated coverage of Hammond Power Solutions with a "sector perform" rating.
The Bank of Canada's next decision on interest rates is due at 9:45 a.m. ET on Wednesday, where the central bank is widely expected to hold rates at a 22-year high of 5%.
Money market participants are pricing in a little over 72% bets of a cut in June.
Besides the Bank of Canada rate decision (about 10 a.m. EDT), Statistics Canada reported the total monthly value of building permits in Canada increased 9.3% from January to $11.8 billion in February.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 2.67 points Tuesday to 588.17.
ON WALLSTREET
Stock futures rose marginally on Wednesday morning as investors await key U.S. inflation data that will inform the Federal Reserve’s path on rate policy.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials index hiked 68 points, or 0.2%, to 39,264.
Futures for the S&P 500 added 7.25 points, or 0.1%, to 5,267.50.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite took on 21 points, or 0.1%, to 18,380.75.
The March reading on consumer price index is slated for release at 8:30 a.m. ET. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect an increase of 0.3% month over month and 3.4% year on year. Economists expect core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, to rise 0.3% and 3.7%, respectively.
In addition to the big inflation report on Wednesday, investors are also looking forward to the meeting minutes from the Fed’s gathering last month. They will be hunting for clues on where policymakers stand on expected rate cuts this year.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 lost 0.5% Wednesday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng gained 1.9%.
Oil prices rocketed up 58 cents to $85.81 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices brightened $4.50 to $2,366.90 U.S. an ounce.
