March 8 (Reuters) - Canadian stock futures rose on
Wednesday as precious metals gained, with investors awaiting the
Bank of Canada's (BoC) interest rate decision later in the day.
March futures on the S&P/TSX index were up 0.2% at
7:21 a.m. ET. Their peers on Wall Street also edged higher.
The BoC is expected to keep rates on hold at 4.5% at 10 a.m.
ET, becoming the first of the world's major central banks to
suspend their tightening campaign, after economic growth stalled
in the fourth quarter of last year.
Gold prices edged up 0.1% in volatile trade, while
silver prices rose 0.2%, providing some support to the
futures of the commodity-heavy index.
Among stocks, U.S. pipeline regulator said it would require
TC Energy to reduce operating pressure on more than
1,000 additional miles (1,609 kilometers) of its Keystone
pipeline that spilled about 13,000 barrels of oil in rural
Kansas in December.
Activist investor Legion Partners Asset Management is
pushing for four new directors to join Primo Water Corp's board, arguing they could help its share price triple
over five years.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended 1.2% lower on Tuesday after hawkish remarks by
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that left open the
possibility for larger U.S. rate hikes. COMMODITIES AT 7:00 a.m. ET
Gold futures : $1,816; +0.1% US crude : $77.4; -0.23% Brent crude : $83.3; -0.01% U.S. ECONOMIC DATA DUE ON WEDNESDAY
Feb ADP National Employment report due at 8:15 a.m. ET
Jan JOLTS Job Openings due at 10:00 a.m. ET
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TSX market report Canadian dollar and bonds report Reuters global stocks poll for Canada Canadian markets directory ($1 = 1.3749 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; editing by
Uttaresh Venkateshwaran)
