Canada’s main stock index gained more than 300 points Monday in a broad-based rally, while U.S. markets also rose.
This week is set to be much quieter than last week, which included the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision and a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 312.06 points at 22,259.47.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 176.59 points at 38,852.27. The S&P 500 index was up 52.95 points at 5,180.74, while the Nasdaq composite was up 192.92 points at 16,349.25.
The Fed held its key rate steady last week but indicated it planned to ease off somewhat on other quantitative tightening measures.
That was more dovish than the market expected, said Rose Devli, portfolio manager at 1832 Asset Management.
U.S. markets rallied on Friday after the jobs report came in cooler than expected.
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The question for investors now is whether economic data will continue slowing down enough to warrant rate cuts, but not too quickly, said Devli.
“It’s the conundrum of, are we in stagflation? Are we in a true slowdown, or what are we looking at here?” she said.
“So May should be interesting.”
Markets are in wait-and-see mode, she said. Expectations for rate cuts have been drastically pared back from the beginning of the year.
Last week, Fed chair Jerome Powell emphasized the fact that inflation is proving stubborn, and that the central bank needs more confidence it’s on the right track before it can cut interest rates.
In Canada, meanwhile, the economic data supports a June cut, noted Devli.
As U.S. earnings season draws to a close, overall, the reports have been pretty good, though signs of an economic slowdown are showing somewhat, said Devli.
Most of the companies in the S&P 500 have already reported their first-quarter results, with more than three-quarters of them topping profit expectations, according to FactSet.
Big names set to report this week include The Walt Disney Co. and Uber Technologies.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.20 cents US compared with 73.14 cents US on Friday.
The June crude contract was up 37 cents at US$78.48 per barrel and the June natural gas contract was up five cents at US$2.19 per 1,000 cubic feet.
The June gold contract was up US$22.60 at US$2,331.20 an ounce and the July copper contract was up six cents at US$4.62 a pound.
— With files from The Associated Press
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