It is anticipated that Bay Street will open on a higher note on Monday primarily due to the rise in commodity prices influencing the performance of resource stocks. Although there are major economic announcements due this week, such as the Federal Reserve's and Bank of England's policy decisions, caution is likely to prevail in the market.
The Federal Reserve is set to release its monetary policy next Wednesday; market analysts anticipate the interest rates will remain unchanged. However, the focus will be on the central bank's statement carrying potential hints about potential interest rate cuts.
There are important developments on the Canadian economic front this week with reports on GDP data and manufacturing activity due.
Last Friday saw the Canadian market close marginally higher, reflecting investor caution. Market participants refrained from significant investment moves as they gauged the possible future steps of the Federal Reserve.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index displayed moderate fluctuations, between 21,079.90 and 21,142.31, ending the session with a modest gain of 23.74 points, or 0.11% at 21,125.28. Overall, the index gained about 1.05% throughout the week.
Asian stocks reported a rise on Monday as China's regulators introduced new strategies to boost both the equity and property markets. However, pre-empting important economic data releases, stock earnings and the decisions from central banks, investors remained cautious, limiting further gains.
European stock markets presented a varied performance, with investors anticipating policy announcements from the Federal Reserve and Bank of England, and key data from Chinese factory activity reports, U.S. non-farm payroll numbers and the Eurozone GDP report.
On the commodities front, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures rose by $0.13, or 0.17%, to $78.14 a barrel. Gold futures showed an increase of $11.60 or 0.58% at $2,028.90 an ounce, while Silver futures moved higher by $0.268 or 1.17% to $23.140 an ounce.
