Bay Street May Open Slightly Weak

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks may open slightly lower on Wednesday as the mood is likely to remain cautious amid uncertainty about the viability of the US-Iran peace deal.

Weak oil and precious metals prices may weigh on energy and materials stocks.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures are down $2.16 or 2.95% at $71.05 a barrel.

Gold futures are down $122.50 or 2.94% at 4,026.90 an ounce, while Silver futures are down $3.100 or 4.98% at $58.970 an ounce.

On the economic front, data from Statistics Canada showed manufacturing sales in Canada dropped to 1.1% in May from 4.2% in April.

Canadian stocks closed lower on Tuesday, weighed down by losses in energy and materials sectors. Fears about possible rate hikes by the Federal Reserve contributed as well to the weak close.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down by 74.80 points or 0.21% at 34,927.38.

Asian stocks ended mixed in lackluster trade on Wednesday despite a bruising tech sell-off on Wall Street overnight on doubts over the future of tech earnings.

The dollar held near a 13-month high in Asian trade while spot gold fell nearly 1 percent below $4,100 an ounce, reaching its lowest level in almost two weeks due to rising bets on U.S. interest rate hikes.

Oil prices held near four-month lows amid indications that more tankers stranded in the Gulf since the start of the Iran war were beginning to move through the Strait of Hormuz.

European stocks are turning in a mixed performance in cautious trade today as investors assess the situation in the Middle East amid disagreements between U.S. and Iran over a few key terms of the peace deal.