Markets today: Global stocks pause as investors brace for U.S. economic data
– S.R. Slobodian
Global markets were lower amid investor caution ahead of a slate of U.S. data, including the jobs report, that may help signal the path for Federal Reserve policy next year.
Wall Street futures were in negative territory after major North American markets closed in the red yesterday. Dow futures were down 0.17 per cent, S&P 500 futures declined 0.36 per cent and Nasdaq futures were 0.57 per cent lower as of 4 a.m. ET.
TSX futures followed sentiment lower after sagging oil prices weighed on Canada’s main stock market yesterday.
On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Lennar Corp.
“The most important question is whether the [jobs] report opens the door for more rate cuts in the early part of next year,” said analysts at Deutsche Bank.
“As it stands, the Fed have only signalled one further cut for 2026 in the dot plot, but we’ve repeatedly seen in this cycle how a softer labour market has pushed them back in a dovish direction.”
Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.09 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 declined 0.34 per cent, Germany’s DAX gave back 0.42 per cent and France’s CAC 40 inched up 0.04 per cent.
In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.56 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.54 per cent.
12/16/25 05:02
Oil slips on Russia-Ukraine peace deal talks, weak China data
– Reuters
Oil prices fell on Tuesday, adding to the previous session’s losses, as prospects for a Russia-Ukraine peace deal appeared to strengthen, raising expectations of a potential easing of sanctions.
Brent crude futures fell 89 US cents, or around 1.5 per cent, to US$59.67 a barrel at 4:42 a.m. ET, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was trading at US$55.90 a barrel, down 92 US cents, or 1.6 per cent. Both contracts were near their lowest since May this year.
“Brent has dropped this morning to below $60 per barrel for the first time in months, as the market assesses a potential peace deal resulting in additional Russian volumes becoming available and oversupplying the market further,” said Rystad analyst Janiv Shah.
The U.S. offered to provide NATO-style security guarantees for Kyiv and European negotiators reported progress in talks on Monday to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, sparking optimism that an end to the conflict was closer.
Russia, meanwhile, said it was not willing to make any territorial concessions in talks on ending the Ukraine war, state news agency TASS quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying.
“The grind in talks will be matched with the continued grind lower in prices as we enter 2026 with all it associated predictions of ‘glut.’ Brent will make a fresh year-to-date low, but will not break below $55 a barrel before the year is out,” said PVM Oil Associates analyst John Evans.
Adding to the pressure, soft Chinese economic data released on Monday further fueled concerns that global demand may not be strong enough to absorb recent supply growth, said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore in a note.
China’s factory output growth slowed to a 15-month low, official data showed. Retail sales also grew at their slowest pace since December 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic
12/16/25 04:30
Stocks close lower as investors position for busy week of data
– Reuters, Globe staff
Stocks closed lower on Monday as investors braced for a slew of U.S. economic data later this week while assessing reports on Federal Reserve candidates and commentary from policy makers for clues on the interest-rate outlook.
The non-farm payroll figures for October and November are due later this week, along with reports on retail sales, business activity and inflation. October’s jobs data was delayed by the government shutdown earlier this quarter. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq had logged their steepest daily declines in more than three weeks on Friday amid concerns about inflation and debt-fuelled AI investments.
Traders also assessed Monday a report that White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett’s candidacy for the Fed chair role received some pushback from people close to U.S. President Donald Trump.
Speculation has been rife over a possible frontrunner as Jerome Powell’s term ends in May. Expectations for a dovish Fed chair have fuelled bets for interest rate cuts next year. Also on Monday, New York Fed President John Williams said the central bank’s interest rate cut last week leaves it in a good position, while Fed Governor Stephen Miran argued that current inflation does not reflect the true supply-demand dynamics.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 41.49 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 48,416.56, the S&P 500 lost 10.90 points, or 0.16 per cent, to 6,816.51 and the Nasdaq Composite lost 137.76 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 23,057.41.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 43.95 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 31,843.44, slightly extending its pullback from a record closing high on Thursday.
