Canada’s main stock index saw a modest uplift Monday as the federal election campaign came to an end, while U.S. markets were mixed ahead of earnings reports from tech heavyweights.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 88.08 points at 24,798.59.
“What’s typical for an election day is the markets have priced in what they can up to this point, and so after tonight’s election is done, we’ll have a more clear direction of where the Canadian economy is going,” said Ashish Utarid, vice-president of investment strategy with IG Wealth Management.
“I’m not surprised to see a very flat day on the Canadian markets.”
As for what will be on investors’ minds after the votes are counted, Utarid said no matter which party wins, it will be all about how Canada can diversify its trade relationships in response to the global turmoil the United States has unleashed.
“Every Canadian has an expectation that there’s going to be some rapid change in the way that we trade our resources and knowledge with other nations.”
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 114.09 points at 40,227.59. The S&P 500 index ticked up 3.54 points at 5,528.75, while the Nasdaq composite dipped 16.81 points at 17,366.13.
Tech behemoths Amazon, Microsoft, Meta and Apple are on deck to report their earnings this week. They’re some of Wall Street’s biggest companies so any moves in their share price can swing entire U.S. indexes. The S&P 500 pulled back and forth between slight gains and losses for much of Monday.
Utarid said he’ll be watching what those companies say about their outlook for the wider global economy, given the ongoing trade chaos.
He said how investors ought to react to the economic uncertainty will depend on how stable they think their jobs are and how much debt they’re carrying.
Those in a solid financial and employment position may want to pick up quality stocks at a discount in the medium term.
“But in the short term, it’s the headline risk, it is uncertainty, it anxiety, and we always remind clients and investors it is really important at this point in time to just understand where you are at personally,” said Utarid.
The Canadian dollar closed at 72.20 cents US compared with 72.13 cents US on Friday.
The June crude oil contract was down 97 cents US at US$62.05 per barrel and the June natural gas contract was up 23 cents US at US$3.34 per mmBTU.
The June gold contract was up US$49.30 at US$3,347.70 an ounce and the July copper contract was down half a penny US at US$4.89 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 28, 2025.
Companies in this story: (TSX: GSPTSE, TSX: CADUSD)
— with files from The Associated Press.
