North American equity markets are pointing to a flat open when trading gets underway this morning. That follows a down day on Monday, where Canada’s benchmark index closed 0.46 per cent lower. South of the border, the Dow fell almost two hundred points or 0.59 per cent, while the Nasdaq lost 0.09 per cent and the S&P 500 dropped 0.2 per cent. Attention in Canada is keenly focused on tomorrow’s Bank of Canada policy announcement, where interest-rate swaps are pricing in a little more than a 40 per cent chance the central bank raises its key lending rate a quarter-point to 4.75 per cent.

OIL ERASES GAINS FOLLOWING SAUDIS ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION CUTS

The price of oil is on the decline as optimism over the Saudi-led production cut has all but faded. West Texas Intermediate is down more than two per cent and trading below US$71 per barrel. Traders are now focused on the outlook for supply and demand. Ed Morse, global head of commodities strategy with Citi Research, wrote in a note this morning that, “demand is looking weaker and non-OPEC supply stronger by year-end than many analysts had forecast. Both OPEC and the IEA forecasts have had an air of wishful thinking about accelerating demand growth by year-end.”

MICROSOFT TO PAY US$20M TO SETTLE CHILD PRIVACY VIOLATIONS

Microsoft will pay a US$20-million fine to reach a settlement after it was found to be illegally gathering and retaining the data of children who signed up to use its Xbox gaming system. The Federal Trade Commission accused the tech company of violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act because it gathered information without notifying parents or obtaining their consent. The agreement must be approved by a federal court before it can go into effect, the FTC said.
 
OTHER NOTABLE STORIES

  • Shares of Apple are heading lower in the pre-market, down more than two per cent following the release of its highly anticipated mixed-reality headset as analysts focus on the high price tag for it and how that will likely weigh on its commercial success in the near term. 
  • Mobileye shares are down more than five per cent ahead of the opening bells after Intel said it would sell part of its holdings in the company in order to raise over a billion dollars to help fund its plans to regain the lead in the semiconductor industry. 
  • Shares of GitLab are surging in the pre-market trade after the software company provided revenue guidance for the full year that topped analyst expectations. 

 NOTABLE RELEASES/EVENTS

  • Notable data: Building Permits, Global Supply Chain Pressure Index
  • Notable earnings: JM Smucker Co., Dave & Buster’s Entertainment
  • Nordstrom AGM