(Reuters) – Futures tracking Canada’s main stock index edged up on Monday, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision and key U.S. economic data this week for clues on pace of monetary easing next year.
Futures on the S&P/TSX index were up 0.1% as of 8:17 a.m. ET.
On Wall Street, S&P 500 E-minis were up 13.25 points, or 0.22%, with 130,871 contracts changing hands, Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 78.5 points, or 0.36%, Dow E-minis were up 77 points, or 0.18%.
Canada is expected to announce on Monday it blew past its deficit target for last year, when Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland presents her mid-term budget, and economists said estimates for this year could also be higher as spending increases.
Freeland is due to present the Fall Economic Statement (FES) to the House of Commons after 4 p.m. EST (2100 GMT).
Potentially impacting Canada stocks at open, oil prices dropped about 1%, pressured by weaker than expected consumer spending in China, the world’s largest oil importer. [O/R]
However, gold prices gained against a softer dollar ahead of the Fed’s policy meeting on Wednesday when the central bank is expected to deliver a third rate cut this year and provide hints regarding its 2025 outlook.
U.S. business survey for December is due later in the day.
The Bank of Canada slashed its key policy rate by 50 basis points last week to help address slower growth, though Governor Tiff Macklem indicated that further cuts would be more gradual and said he does not expect a recession.
In corporate news, Barrick Gold will suspend operations in Mali if gold shipments continue to be blocked, the company said, as it struggles to reach agreement with authorities on a new mining code in the West African country.
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(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)