FX.co ★ Bay Street Likely To Open On Mixed Note

Depressed commodity prices and the lull in European markets suggest that the Canadian market might open slightly mixed on Monday. There's an atmosphere of caution as investors anticipate crucial economic data from the U.S. this week.

In the earnings department, Cargojet Inc. marked a loss of C$34.9 million or C$2.04 per share for the fourth quarter, a stark contrast from last year's earnings of C$2.6 million or C$0.15 per share. Meanwhile, Emera Incorporated declared its fourth-quarter net profits for 2023 standing at $175 million, deriving to $0.63 per common share. It's a substantial decrease from last year's $249 million, or $0.93 per common share.

Echoing the global anticipation of economic data, early reports concerning manufacturing and wholesale sales for January in Canada are expected to release at 8:30 AM ET.

Closing on a positive note, the Canadian market ended higher on Friday, with the tech sector bringing in significant gains. The index S&P/TSX Composite marked a 0.45% increase, ending at 21,413.15 points, up by 95.07 points from a low of 21,274.41 and a high of 21,440.41. Overall, the index grew about 0.75% during the truncated holiday week.

However, Asia's markets didn't share the same optimism, with majority of stocks closing on a lower note on Monday. Investor sentiment remained skeptical due to concerns of China's economic recovery and uncertainty around U.S. interest rate cuts. Japan brought some uplift with the Nikkei 225 reaching a new high.

On the other hand, European stocks remained reserved as investors await key inflation data from the eurozone this week – a potential parameter to gauge the possibility of interest rate cuts. Traders also await ECB President Lagarde's speech set to happen later today.

In terms of commodities, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are slightly down, priced at $76.10 a barrel, a 0.51% decrease. Not too far behind, Gold Futures also fell, standing at $2,043.00 an ounce, a 0.31% decrease. Silver futures suffered the most, decreasing 1.73% to land at $22.585 an ounce.