Bay Street Likely To Open Lower

(RTTNews) - Lower Canadian and U.S. futures, and weak crude oil prices point to a negative start on Bay Street Thursday morning.

Asian stocks closed on a buoyant note and European stocks are sharply higher, reacting to U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day pause on most of his sweeping reciprocal tariffs.

Countries affected by the higher reciprocal duties that took effect Wednesday will now be taxed at the earlier 10% baseline rate applied to other nations, except for China, which remains subject to a 125% tariff.

The U.S. and Canadian markets had reacted to the announcement and moved up sharply on Wednesday.

The focus this morning will be on U.S. consumer price inflation data, which could give some clues about the Federal Reserve's interest rate move in its next meeting.

Canadian stocks skyrocketed on Wednesday in reaction to President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day tariff pause.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index spiked 1,220.13 points or 5.4% to 23,727.03, showing a substantial rebound after ending the previous session at its lowest closing level since last August.

Asian stocks rallied the most in more than two years on Thursday as U.S. President Donald Trump paused most of his sweeping reciprocal tariffs for 90 days to allow more time for negotiations, but raised the levies on China to 125%, further escalating a high-stakes confrontation between the world's two largest economies.

European markets are up sharply despite coming off early highs. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 is up 4.3%, Germany's DAX is up 5.4% and France's CAC 40 is gaining 5.1%. The pan European Stoxx 600 is up 5.2%.

In commodities trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $1.82 or 2.95% at $60.53 a barrel.

Gold futures are gaining $61.50 or 2% at $3,140.90 an ounce, while Silver futures are up $0.455 or 1.5% at $30.870 an ounce.