Bay Street May Open On Mixed Note With Focus On Inflation Data, Commodities

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks are likely to open mixed on Monday with investors digesting the nation's inflation data and the trend in the commodity markets. Worries about the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict may continue to weigh on sentiment.

With top Canadian banks set to report their quarterly earnings this week, the mood is likely to remain cautious.

Data from Statistics Canada showed the inflation Rate in Canada increased to 3% in July (year-on-year) from 2.8% in June. The Consumer Price Index in Canada increased 0.5% in July over the previous month.

Core consumer prices in Canada increased 2.3% in July over the same month in the previous year.

A separate data from Statistics Canada showed car registrations in Canada decreased to 190,200 units in June from 190,600 Units in May.

OceanaGold Corporation announced that it has entered into a scheme implementation deed to acquire Ausgold Limited, the owner of the Katanning Gold Project in Western Australia. As per the terms, Ausgold shareholders will receive 0.03365 shares of OceanaGold for each Ausgold share. Post transaction, Ausgold will own around 6% to 8% of OceanaGold.

The Canadian market ended slightly lower on Friday as investors turned risk-averse after the U.S. revealed plans for severe economic measures and an indefinite naval blockade against Iran. Concerns about tariffs weighed as well. The ongoing Canada-U.S. negotiations for avoiding 50% tariffs are yet to yield a breakthrough ahead of an August 19 deadline.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended with a loss of 29.02 points or 0.08% at 36,730.27.

Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Monday as weak U.S. economic data raised the risk of slowing growth when inflation is still high. Higher oil prices weighed as well.

European stocks are mostly subdued today with investors refraining from making significant moves amid concerns about global growth outlook due to the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures climbed to $83.23 a barrel, gaining more than 1%, but dropped to $82..22 now, down 0.16% from previous close.

Gold futures are up $13.20 or 0.31% at $4,450.50 an ounce, while Silver futures are up $0.712 or 1.09% at $65.820 an ounce.