TSX Drops 100 Points Ahead Of BoC Rate Call -- Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks fell Tuesday, pressured by geopolitical concerns and expectations the Bank of Canada will raise interest rates this week.

The TSX Composite Index was down 101.45 points to 15,090.15 despite higher oil and gold prices.

Markets were on edge amid reports that North Korea is moving ICBM missiles towards its West Coast in preparation for another test launch.

Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO, CVE) announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Pelican Lake heavy oil operations, as well as other miscellaneous assets in northern Alberta for gross cash proceeds of $975 million.

Hudson's Bay Co's (HBC) opens the first of 10 planned department stores in the Netherlands today.

Boeing has rejected the Canadian government's request to drop its anti-competitive complaint again Bombardier (BBD.B.TO).

Dec. gold gained $14.10, or 1.1%, to settle at $1,344.50/oz, the highest since September 2016.

Crude oil futures touched the highest in four weeks Tuesday, supported by concerns about rigs in the Gulf of Mexico.

Just a week after Hurricane Harvey disrupted refineries along the Texas coast, Hurricane Irma is bearing down on Caribbean islands and may be heading for the Gulf of Mexico as a category 4 or 5 storm.

Oct. WTI oil climbed $1.37, or 2.9%, to settle at $48.66/bbl, the highest since August 11.

The U.S. dollar weakened as a pair of Federal Reserve officials hinted the central bank will keep interest rates on hold this year.

Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said it is very possible that the central bank's four interest-rate hikes since late 2015 could now be doing "real harm" to the economy.

Also, inflation is falling "well short" of target so the Federal Reserve should be cautious about raising interest rates until it is confident of a rebound, Fed Governor Lael Brainard.

In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report on Tuesday showing a sharp pullback in U.S. factory orders in the month of July.

Factory orders plunged by 3.3 percent in July after surging up by an upwardly revised 3.2 percent in June.

China's private sector expanded at the strongest pace in six months in August underpinned by increased activity at both manufacturers and services providers.

Eurozone retail sales declined in July due to a fall in food sales, data from Eurostat showed Tuesday. Retail sales volume decreased 0.3 percent month-on-month in July, partially offsetting June's 0.6 percent increase. The pace of decline matched economists' expectations.

Eurozone private sector logged steady growth in August, final data from IHS Markit showed Tuesday. The composite output index came in at 55.7 in August, matching July's reading but down slightly from the flash estimate of 55.8.