Futures tracking the S&P/TSX Composite Index declined on Tuesday as a global equity selloff intensified amid escalating conflict in the Middle East. Iran targeted energy infrastructure in the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, and warned it would strike vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The moves sent energy commodities sharply higher, stoking fresh inflation concerns.
Financials led the decline, as a steep drop in Canadian government bond prices weighed on credit conditions and pressured bank shares, with RBC, TD Bank, and BMO all poised to open lower. By contrast, energy stocks found support from the jump in crude prices. In after-hours trading on Monday, Capstone Copper reported fourth-quarter earnings that came in below analyst estimates.