Before the Bell: What every Canadian investor needs to know today

Before the Bell: What every Canadian investor needs to know today S.R. SLOBODIAN PUBLISHED 1 HOUR AGO UPDATED 5 MINUTES AGO COMMENTS SHARE SAVE FOR LATER Listen to this article Learn more about audio Log in or create a free account to listen to this article. Equities Global markets were mostly lower as supply concerns in the Middle ​East caused oil prices to spike again and investors braced ‌for likely interest rate hikes in both the United States and Japan this week. On Wall Street, Nasdaq futures led losses, dragged ⁠by a ​selloff in AI heavyweights after top U.S. executives said development of the technology should be slowed due to safety concerns. TSX futures followed sentiment lower ahead of August inflation numbers. “We now expect the Fed to hike twice this year, in September and December,” said ‌Michael Feroli, chief ​U.S. economist at JPMorgan. “At this stage, ‌failing to back up words with action could put the credibility of the institution at risk.” Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.24 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.68 per cent, Germany’s DAX declined 0.53 per cent and France’s CAC 40 gave back 0.73 per cent. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 0.81 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 0.45 per cent.    TSX 60 FUTURES 2,092.60-4.10 (-0.20%) DOW FUTURES 52,455.00-177.00 (-0.34%) S&P 500 FUTURES 7,595.75-63.75 (-0.83%) PAST DAY -0.20% -0.25% -0.83% CLOSE, SEPT. 11 5:31 A.M., SEPT. 14 SOURCE: BARCHART Commodities Oil prices rose after new strikes on Saudi Arabian energy and civilian infrastructure ⁠and Iranian ​attacks on ships in the Gulf compounded supply concerns following the closing of a key Saudi oil pipeline. Brent crude futures climbed 2.5 per cent to US$107.20 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures gained 2.4 per cent to US$102.50 a barrel. “This follows a step-up ​in attacks on Saudi Arabian energy infrastructure, including targeting ‌the crucial East-West pipeline,” said ING commodity strategists, though they noted it was unclear how severe any potential damage was or how long the pipeline would be out of action. In other commodities, spot gold was down 0.9 per cent to US$4,308.24 an ⁠ounce. U.S. gold futures dropped 1.4 per cent to US$4,348.50. WTI US$103.34+3.29 (3.29%) SPOT GOLD US$4,322.80-86.10 (-1.95%) HIGH GRADE COPPER US$6.41-0.14 (-2.09%) PAST DAY 3.29% -1.95% -2.09% CLOSE, SEPT. 11 5:26 A.M., SEPT. 14 SOURCE: BARCHART Currencies and…