logo
TSX futures dip as tariff threats weigh on sentiment

TSX futures dip as tariff threats weigh on sentiment

Reuters14-07-2025
July 14 (Reuters) - Futures linked to Canada's main stock index fell on Monday, with the latest threat of U.S. tariffs lowering investor risk appetite.
Futures on the S&P/TSX index (.SXFcv1), opens new tab were down 0.1% by 06:05 a.m. ET (1005 GMT).
U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday announced a 30% tariff on most imports from the EU and Mexico starting August 1, despite ongoing trade negotiations.
Trump had issued a letter late on Thursday implementing a 35% tariff rate on Canada, adding that the rate would go up if Canada retaliated.
Exclusion for goods covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) on trade are expected to stay, while the 10% tariffs on energy and fertilizer are also not set to change.
The letter had complained about the flow of fentanyl from Canada and that the country's tariff and non-tariff trade barriers hurt U.S. dairy farmers. Trump also referred to the trade deficit with Canada as a threat to U.S. economy and national security.
Gold prices gained to a three-week high on safe-haven demand, while silver hit a more than 13-year peak. Oil prices , rose to a three-week high.
Toronto's benchmark S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE), opens new tab ended last week barely changed, after dropping on Friday with the proposed tariffs on Canadian goods weighing on sentiment and domestic jobs data clipping expectations of a Central Bank rate cut.
FOR CANADIAN MARKETS NEWS, CLICK ON CODES:
TSX market report
Canadian dollar and bonds report CA/
Reuters global stocks poll for Canada ,
Canadian markets directory
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

5 years after Ohio's $60M bribery scandal, critics say more could be done to prevent a repeat
5 years after Ohio's $60M bribery scandal, critics say more could be done to prevent a repeat

The Independent

time14 minutes ago

  • The Independent

5 years after Ohio's $60M bribery scandal, critics say more could be done to prevent a repeat

Five years after a $60 million bribery scheme funded by FirstEnergy Corp. came to light in Ohio, expert observers say the resulting prosecutions, lawsuits, penalties and legislation haven't led to enough change and accountability to prevent politicians and corporate executives from cutting similar deals in the future. The scheme — whose prospective $2 billion-plus pricetag to consumers makes it the largest infrastructure scandal in U.S. history — surfaced with the stunning arrests of a powerful Republican state lawmaker and four associates on July 21, 2020. That lawmaker, former House Speaker Larry Householder, is serving 20 years in federal prison for masterminding the racketeering operation at the center of the scandal. Jurors agreed with prosecutors that money that changed hands wasn't everyday political giving, but an elaborate secret scheme orchestrated by Householder to elect political allies, become the House speaker, pass a $1 billion nuclear bailout law in House Bill 6 and crush a repeal effort. One of the dark money groups Householder used also pleaded guilty to racketeering. Householder and a former lobbyist have unsuccessfully challenged their convictions. Two of the arrested associates pleaded guilty, and the other died by suicide. Dark money keeps flowing Any hope that the convictions would have clarified federal law around 501(c)4 nonprofit 'dark money' groups or prompted new restrictions on those hasn't materialized, said former U.S. Attorney David DeVillers, who led the initial investigation. 'I think it's actually worse than it was before,' he said. 'Nationally, you have both Democrats and Republicans using these, so there's no political will to do anything about it.' Indeed, a study released in May by the Brennan Center for Justice found that dark money unleashed by the 2010 Citizens United decision hit a record high of $1.9 billion in 2024 federal races, nearly double the $1 billion spent in 2020. The vast majority of money from undisclosed donors raised into dark money accounts now goes to super PACs, providing them a way to skirt a requirement that they make their donors public, the study found. DeVillers said one positive result of the scandal is that Ohio lawmakers appear genuinely concerned about avoiding quid pro quos, real or perceived, between them and their political contributors. Anti-corruption legislation perennially introduced by Ohio Democrats since the scandal broke has gone nowhere in the GOP-dominated Legislature. Republican legislative leaders have said it is outside their authority to amend federal campaign finance law. The U.S. Attorney's office declined to discuss the investigation because prosecutions remain ongoing. Two fired FirstEnergy executives have pleaded not guilty on related state and federal charges and await trial. Former Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Chairman Samuel Randazzo, to whom FirstEnergy admitted giving a $4.3 million bribe in exchange for regulatory favors, had faced both federal and state charges. He died by suicide after pleading not guilty. State regulator hasn't penalized FirstEnergy Akron-based FirstEnergy — a $23 billion Fortune 500 company with 6 million customers in five states — admitted using dark money groups to bankroll Householder's ascendance in exchange for passage of the bailout bill. It agreed to pay $230 million and meet other conditions to avoid prosecution, and faced other sanctions, including a $100 million civil penalty by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. But FirstEnergy hasn't yet faced consequences from the state regulator. 'They never actually got penalized by regulators at the PUCO level,' said Ohio Consumers' Counsel Maureen Willis, the lawyer for Ohio utility customers. Testimony in four PUCO proceedings stemming from the scandal finally began last month after the cases were delayed for nearly two years, in part at the request of the Justice Department. They're intended to determine whether FirstEnergy used money for bribes that was meant for grid modernization and whether it improperly comingled money from its different corporate entities. FirstEnergy spokeperson Jennifer Young said it invested $4 billion in grid upgrades in 2024 and plans to spend a total of $28 billion through 2029. Young said FirstEnergy has redesigned its organizational structure, established a dedicated ethics and compliance office, overhauled the company's political activity and lobbying practices and strengthened other corporate governance and oversight practices. 'FirstEnergy is a far different company today than it was five years ago,' she said. The PUCO also made changes in response to the scandal. Chair Jenifer French told state lawmakers that ethics training has been enhanced, staff lawyers and the administrative law judges who hear cases now report to different directors to ensure legal independence, and she never takes a meeting alone. Some tainted money hasn't been returned to customers Ashley Brown, a retired executive director of the Harvard Electricity Policy Group who previously served as a PUCO commissioner, said the commission is the only state entity with the power to order FirstEnergy to return tainted cash — including the bribe money — to customers. That largely hasn't happened. He said the Ohio commission had vast power to hold FirstEnergy accountable for its misdeeds but hasn't conducted its own management audit of the energy giant, demanded an overhaul of FirstEnergy's corporate board or pressed for public release of FirstEnergy's own internal investigation of the scandal, whose findings remain a mystery. Shareholders won some accountability measures as part of a $180 million settlement in 2022, but they continue to fight in court for release of the investigation. Willis does, too. 'How do you allow a utility to operate a vast criminal conspiracy within the utility (with) consumer dollars, and you don't even look at what went wrong?' Brown said. PUCO spokesperson Matt Schilling reiterated that the commission's probes are ongoing. He said the panel has vowed to take its proceedings 'wherever the facts lead.' The portion of HB 6 that bailed out two FirstEnergy-affiliated nuclear plants was repealed in 2021, and $26 million was refunded to customers. The scandal investigation revealed that other power distribution companies got a lucrative payout of their own added to the bill in exchange for their buy-in: subsidies for two unprofitable Cold War-era coal plants. It wasn't until April that a law was passed repealing those subsidies. Until that takes effect Aug. 14, the charges cost Ohio ratepayers $445,679 a day — and it's unclear if or when they'll get that money back. A ticker on Willis' website puts the total they've paid at more than $500 million and counting.

Fiat and Vauxhall maker expects £2bn loss after US tariffs hit production
Fiat and Vauxhall maker expects £2bn loss after US tariffs hit production

The Independent

time14 minutes ago

  • The Independent

Fiat and Vauxhall maker expects £2bn loss after US tariffs hit production

Fiat and Vauxhall carmaker Stellantis is expecting losses to hit £2 billion for the first half of the year as Donald Trump's tariffs squeezed US deliveries and the company grapples with heavy charges. The Dutch business, which is one of the world's biggest automakers, told investors that shipments dropped in recent months partly due to tariff-related pauses in production. It reported a preliminary net loss of 2.3 billion euros (£2 billion) for the first half of 2025. This would mean it swinging to a significant loss after reporting a 5.6 billion euros (£4.9 billion) net profit the same time last year. It said it was expecting some 3.3 billion euros (£2.9 billion) worth of pre-tax net charges in relation to factors including a recent US law scrapping penalties for producing polluting cars, and the company's restructuring efforts. Donald Trump announced on imported vehicles, which has been in place since April" data-source=""> The early cost effects of Mr Trump's higher tariff rates on US imports was estimated to be 300,000 million euros (£260,000), including the impact of lost production. Stellantis halted production at plants in Canada and Mexico after the US president announced a 25% tariff on imported vehicles, which has been in place since April. The UK reached a deal with the US to reduce the levy on its car exports, but other countries remain in negotiations with officials. The firm has also been navigating an overhaul following the abrupt departure of former boss Carlos Tavares in December, and new boss Antonio Filosa appointed in May to oversee the group's turnaround. The carmaker, which also owns brands Jeep and Peugeot, revealed that shipments – meaning the volume of vehicles delivered to dealers and customers – declined over the latest period. In North America, shipments fell by about 109,000, or 25%, between April and June compared with the same period last year. This partly reflected the impact of reduced manufacturing and shipments of imported vehicles, driven by tariffs, it said. Totals sales also declined by a 10th year-on-year in the US, according to its preliminary figures.

Nasdaq, S&P hit record levels as megacaps rise ahead of tech earnings
Nasdaq, S&P hit record levels as megacaps rise ahead of tech earnings

Reuters

time15 minutes ago

  • Reuters

Nasdaq, S&P hit record levels as megacaps rise ahead of tech earnings

July 21 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq reached new record highs on Monday, bolstered by gains in megacaps as investors geared up for the week's major tech earnings, while the prospects of fresh trade deals also boosted sentiment. At 11:21 a.m. ET, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab gained 34.97 points, or 0.56%, to 6,331.90 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC), opens new tab gained 147.24 points, or 0.71%, to 21,042.87. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab rose 201.87 points, or 0.46%, to 44,544.76, just 1.28% shy of its all-time high. Verizon (VZ.N), opens new tab gained 4.1% after boosting its annual profit forecast. The stock also drove up the communications sector (.SPLRCL), opens new tab, which emerged as the top gainer among other sectors. Most big-tech names moved higher, pushing the S&P's information technology sector (.SPLRCT), opens new tab up 0.6% to hit an all-time high. The spotlight was on Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab and electric-vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab, whose results this week will kick off the "Magnificent Seven" earnings parade, and could set the tone for Wall Street. Shares of Alphabet rose 2.1%, while Tesla dipped 0.2%. Both stocks have lagged their peers so far this year, with Tesla down 18.5% year to date and Alphabet slipping 0.2%. "It is going to be interesting to see the Tesla and Google reports," because those two are kind of "underachievers in the Mag 7 this year," said Mike Dickson, head of research at Horizon Investments. "We're going to need these earnings reports to just really knock it out of the park if we want to see this little leg of the rally continue." Despite U.S. President Donald Trump's August 1 tariff deadline, the S&P 500 (.SPX), opens new tab and the Nasdaq (.IXIC), opens new tab reached new heights recently as investors believed that the economic fallout from tariffs might not be as dire as once feared. Trump has threatened to slap 30% tariffs on imports from Mexico and the EU, and sent letters to other trading partners, including Canada, Japan and Brazil, setting blanket tariff rates ranging from 20% to 50%. Investors were expecting some progress in trade talks after U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Sunday expressed confidence over striking a trade deal with the European Union. However, EU diplomats said the 27-member bloc is exploring a broader set of possible counter-measures against the United States, as hopes for a breakthrough deal with Washington dwindled. On the economic data front, investors will keep a close eye on jobless claims figures and the July business activity report, expected on Thursday. They will also closely analyze Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's remarks on Tuesday for any clues on the central bank's next move, especially after last week's mixed inflation signals. Traders have largely ruled out a July rate cut, and are now pegging the odds at about 56% for a September reduction, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 3.02-to-1 ratio on the NYSE, and by a 2.58-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq. The S&P 500 posted 15 new 52-week highs and 5 new lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 73 new highs and 34 new lows.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store