TSX climbs amid dip-buying, corporate earnings

Investing.com - Canada’s main stock exchange was higher on Wednesday, as dip buying by investors extended into a second day and more corporate earnings flowed in.

By 12.05 ET, the S&P/TSX 60 index standard futures contract had risen by 25 points, or 1.57%.

The S&P/TSX composite index jumped by 350 points or 1.27% at 27,920.87.

On Tuesdsay, it rebounded from three consecutive negative days and notching its largest increase since April 11. It closed above a recent record high as well.

Markets were keeping tabs on the latest trade negotiations, with Canada’s top diplomat noting that Canadian ministers held a "productive" meeting Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on addressing the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs.

In individual stocks, e-commerce giant Shopify unveiled a third-quarter revenue outlook that exceeded market estimates, citing benefits from its artificial intelligence enhancements and platform upgrades that helped offset potential tariff headwinds. U.S.-listed shares of Shopify soared by almost 10% in premarket trading.

U.S. stocks climb

U.S. stock index edged higher, bouncing after the previous session’s weakness.

At 4:00 p.m. ET (20:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained about 82 points, or 0.2%, the S&P 500 index rose 0.7%, and the NASDAQ Composite climbed 1.2%.

The main averages fell in the prior session, amid concerns about the health of the U.S. economy, especially in the wake of Friday’s weak jobs data. The broad-based S&P 500 registered its fifth down day of the last six and the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its sixth negative session of the past seven.

Economic weakness prompts concerns

Stock markets have been mostly under pressure this week on concerns that the Trump administration’s volatile trade policies will hit economic activity in the world’s largest economy.

The Institute for Supply Management’s non-manufacturing purchasing managers’ index unexpectedly fell to a reading of 50.1 in July from 50.8 in the prior month, a disappointment given services make up about 80% of economic growth.

At the same time a gauge of input costs paid by these firms surged to its highest level in almost three years -- fueling worries that the U.S. may be entering a period of tepid growth and elevated price gains, known as "stagflation."

This economic weakness has raised expectations of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve in September, especially after last week’s weak payrolls data and comments from San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, who signaled openness to a September cut.

There’s little in the way of first tier economic data due Wednesday, but investors will be monitoring comments from a series of Fed members later in the session, including Susan Collins, Lisa Cook as well as Daly once more, for clues about the U.S. central bank’s likely interest rate path going forward.

AMD revenue growth disappoints

Still, the almost-concluded second-quarter earnings season has been broadly solid, with more than 80% of firms who have reported so far beating expectations.

Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) has lifted its annual adjusted earnings per share guidance, as the media conglomerate’s ESPN sports broadcasting empire said it would launch a new direct-to-consumer streaming service on August 21. Shares were lower premarket.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) shares rose more than 3% before the bell after it reported a rebound in comparable sales in the second quarter, as the burger chain highlighted technology investments and marketing efforts aimed at boosting demand during a time of wider economic uncertainty.

Elsewhere, Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ:AMD) shares fell sharply premarket after the chipmaker unveiled underwhelming quarterly revenue at its crucial data center business, especially when compared with AI-darling Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA).

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) shares plummeted premarket as the social media company reported a weak quarter as mounting competition underscored the company’s struggle to keep pace with AI-driven peers.

Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN) also struggled premarket after the electric vehicle company’s second-quarter loss was worse than expected amid trade-related supply chain disruptions.

Crude rebounds

Oil prices rose, was low extending previous session’s five-week low in the previous day with the prospect of tighter U.S. sanctions against the buyers of Russian oil offering some support.

At 12.05 ET, Brent was down, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures was down 0.46% to $64.86 per barrel.

Both benchmarks fell by more than $1 on Tuesday to settle at their lowest in five weeks, marking a fourth session of losses, on oversupply concerns from OPEC+’s planned September output hike.

Trump on Tuesday kept up his threats of increasing trade tariffs against India, over New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil, saying he will impose additional tariffs on India this week, after slapping the country with 25% tariffs last week.

API data showing a substantially bigger-than-expected draw in U.S. oil inventories last week–4.2 million barrels, against expectations for a 1.8 million barrel draw–also offered support.

Gold dips

Gold prices slipped, consolidating after four days of gains, as investors digested weak U.S. economic data as well as Trump’s potential appointment to a vacant seat on the Federal Reserve’s board.

At 07:48 ET, Spot Gold ticked down 0.5% to $3,365.00 an ounce.

Bullion has risen in the last four consecutive sessions, with marginal gains this week after a 2% jump on Friday.