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 52 MINUTES AGO UPDATED 39 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 mixed as oil prices fell for a sixth straight session, while a ​fresh wave of AI optimism lifted tech stocks globally. Wall Street futures were muted after the tech-heavy Nasdaq to a fresh record high close yesterday. TSX futures were in the red after Canada’s main stock market gained nearly 1 per cent yesterday. In Canada, investors are getting results from AGF Management Ltd. On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Cintas Corp., General Mills Inc. and Paychex Inc. “Further pullback in oil prices ... gave support to equities, while the technology complex was also fuelled by Muse AI-led euphoria,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, wrote in a note. “Banks, insurers and travel agencies felt the pinch, however – scared that Muse AI (and the likes) would disrupt businesses that have so far benefited from consumer inertia.” Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.04 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.13 per cent, Germany’s DAX declined 0.27 per cent and France’s CAC 40 climbed 0.12 per cent. In Asia, Japanese markets were closed for a holiday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed 1.01 per cent lower.    S&P 500 FUTURES 7,835.25+3.50 (0.04%) DOW FUTURES 52,289.00+10.00 (0.02%) TSX 60 FUTURES 2,129.60-2.30 (-0.11%) PAST DAY 0.04% 0.02% -0.11% CLOSE, SEPT. 22 5:04 A.M., SEPT. 23 SOURCE: BARCHART Commodities ​Oil prices held near their lowest in more than two weeks, kept ​in check by improving Gulf crude supplies and ‌growing hopes for a diplomatic resolution to the US-Israeli war on Iran. Brent crude futures rose 0.18 per cent to US$99.43 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fell 0.61 per cent to US$89.95. While U.S. President Donald Trump warned yesterday that he could “annihilate” Iran, he also said his envoys had held productive talks with mediators of Iran to end the ​war. “Trump is trying to give off strong vibes ‌of good talks ... so that’s possibly something driving down oil prices,” said WisdomTree commodity strategist Nitesh Shah. “But I’d caution that things could change quite abruptly back into positive price moves.” In other commodities, spot gold dropped 0.9 per cent to…