(Reuters) – Futures for Canada’s main stock index edged lower on Tuesday as prices of precious metals fell, while investors awaited producer prices data and another inflation report from the United States for more clues on the central bank’s interest-rate path.
June futures on the S&P/TSX index were down 0.2% at 6:45 a.m. ET (10:45 GMT).
Markets will keep a close eye on the producer prices data for April, due at 0830 ET, after consumer price inflation (CPI) rate slowed to 2.7% last month and core measures continued to ease, bringing the CPI closer to the Bank of Canada’s 2% target.
Later in the week, the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index – U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation – will be on investors’ radar for the timings of potential interest rate cuts by the U.S. central bank.
Materials sector, which houses Canada’s precious and base metal miners, will grab focus, with prices of gold and silver dropping ahead of key U.S. inflation data.
However, prices of base metals rose, supported by the prospects of interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank, a weaker dollar and China’s moves to help the property sector. [MET/L]
Energy shares could also see an impact after oil prices moved higher as the prospect of OPEC+ maintaining oil supply curbs at its June 2 meeting and hopes of strong U.S. summer fuel demand balanced concern about higher-for-longer U.S. rates.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended higher on Monday, moving closer to the record closing high it posted last week at 22,468.16.
Stateside, stock index futures ticked higher after investors returned from the extended weekend. [.N]
Bank of Nova Scotia reported a fall in second-quarter profit as the lender set aside larger loan loss reserves in case customers fall behind on paying back debt in an uncertain economy.
COMMODITIES AT 6:45 a.m. ET
Gold futures: $2,346.1; -0.5% [GOL/]
US crude: $79.02; +1.7% [O/R]
Brent crude: $83.34; +0.3% [O/R]
($1= C$1.3626)
(Reporting by Shubham Batra in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)