What every Canadian investor needs to know today

Global markets were on the rise as investors assessed what a second Donald Trump presidency might mean in the longer term, while all eyes were on the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to cut interest rates today for the second time this year.
Wall Street’s main stock indexes hit record highs in the runup the Fed decision, extending the sharp rally sparked by Trump’s decisive win.
The S&P 500 rose 0.31 per cent at the open to 5,947.21​, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.53 per cent to 19,084.428. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed course, falling 0.03 per cent to 43,718.92.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index opened 0.26 per cent higher at 24,702.67, led by gains in energy shares.
In Canada, investors are getting results from BCE Inc., Canadian Tire Corp., Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp., Barrick Gold Corp., Cameco Corp., Hydro One Ltd., TC Energy Corp., Bombardier Inc., Quebecor Inc. and Stantec Inc.
Bell parent company BCE Inc. has posted a net loss of $1.2-billion in its third quarter, largely attributable to a $2.1-billion writedown of its television and radio properties.
Canadian Tire Corp. has reported its profits grew by 8.3 per cent in the third quarter, beating analyst expectations, even as a weak consumer environment led to continuing sales declines.
Stocks are “rewarding the presumed likelihood of corporate tax cuts and perceiving a general penchant toward deregulation across industries as positive for earnings,” said Naomi Fink, chief global strategist at Nikko Asset Management.
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.69 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 was little changed, Germany’s DAX rose 1.56 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.41 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.25 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 2.02 per cent.
Oil prices declined, extending a selloff triggered by the U.S. presidential election, as a strong dollar and lower crude imports in China outweighed supply risks from a Trump presidency and output cuts caused by Hurricane Rafael.
Brent crude oil futures fell 0.8 per cent to US$74.29 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped 1 per cent to US$70.96.
Downside factors include a strong dollar and sluggish demand, while upside pressures come from potentially increased sanctions on Iran and Venezuela under Trump, as well as conflict in the Middle East, said Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen.
“Absent any major geopolitical escalation, the short-term outlook leans toward downside risk in my opinion.”
In other commodities, spot gold rose 0.3 per cent to US$2,668.23 an ounce, after hitting its lowest level since Oct. 15 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures were steady at US$2,675.40.
The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.
The day range on the loonie was 71.68 US cents to 72.10 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was down about 1.03 per cent against the greenback over the past month.
The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, gave back 0.49 per cent to 104.57, following yesterday’s big rally.
The euro gained 0.57 per cent to US$1.0792. The British pound rose 0.70 per cent to US$1.2969.
In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last down at 4.40 per cent.
Pipeline operator TC Energy’s third-quarter profit beat Wall Street estimates, helped by higher volumes of liquids transported through its system.
Canada’s Barrick Gold has missed Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit, weighed down by higher costs and lower production at its Nevada mines.
Bombardier says its third-quarter revenue rose 12 per cent, helped by strong demand for business jet parts and repairs.
The Bank of England cut interest rates today for only the second time since 2020 and said future reductions were likely to be gradual, seeing higher inflation and growth after the new government’s first budget.
Germany industrial production and trade surplus, which fell more than expected in September, showing the weakness of two of the pillars of the German economic model at the start of the fourth quarter.
China current account surplus
Japan real cash earnings
Euro zone retail sales
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. initial jobless claims for week of Nov. 2. Estimate is 220,000, up 4,000 from the previous week.
(8:30 a.m. ET) U.S. productivity and unit labour costs for Q3. The Street expects annualized rate rises of 2.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively.
(9 a.m. ET) Bank of Canada deputy governor Rhys Mendes makes opening remarks at the John Kuszczak Memorial Lecture in Ottawa.
(10 a.m. ET) U.S. wholesale inventories for September
(2 p.m. ET) U.S. Fed announcement with chair Jerome Powell’s press briefing to follow.
With Reuters and The Canadian Press