Equities<\/p>\n
Global stocks recovered some of their recent losses after comments by U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell bolstered rate-cut hopes<\/a> and a slate of positive bank earnings on Wall Street.<\/p>\n U.S. futures were in positive territory. Dow futures were up 0.43 per cent, S&P 500 futures rose 0.65 per cent and Nasdaq futures were 0.86 per cent higher as of 7:20 a.m. ET.<\/p>\n TSX futures followed sentiment higher after Canada\u2019s main stock marked ended sharply up yesterday. <\/p>\n On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Bank of America Corp.<\/a>, Morgan Stanley, Abbott Laboratories, Progressive Corp., Kinder Morgan Inc., United Airlines Holdings Inc., PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and Prologis Inc.<\/p>\n Powell yesterday left the door open to further rate cuts and said the end of the central bank\u2019s long-running effort to shrink the size of its holdings may be coming into view.<\/p>\n Powell \u201cstruck a more dovish tone than expected,\u201d Deutsche Bank analysts wrote. His comments on ending the shrinking of the Fed balance sheet in the coming months \u201cputs December on the map in terms of a halt,\u201d they added.<\/p>\n Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.71 per cent in morning trading. Britain\u2019s FTSE 100 declined 0.46 per cent, Germany\u2019s DAX climbed 0.23 per cent and France\u2019s CAC 40 advanced 2.6 per cent.<\/p>\n In Asia, Japan\u2019s Nikkei closed 1.76 per cent higher, while Hong Kong\u2019s Hang Seng rose 1.84 per cent. <\/p>\n Commodities<\/p>\n Oil prices drifted lower, extending losses from the previous session, as investors weighed the International Energy Agency\u2019s warning of a supply surplus in 2026 and U.S.-China trade tensions that could curtail demand.<\/p>\n Brent crude futures fell 0.2 per cent to US$62.24 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures eased 0.1 per cent to US$58.64 a barrel.<\/p>\n \u201cThe market is focusing on excess supply amid mixed demand signals. Ebbing geopolitical risks and escalating trade tensions are also adding further pressure on prices,\u201d said Emril Jamil, a senior oil analyst at LSEG.<\/p>\n