Markets numbers: Tuesday, June 16, 2009

| North American markets | International markets | Bonds | Currency | Commodities |

The Toronto stock market will likely find support at the opening following a steep loss Monday as a weaker U.S. dollar helps send oil prices higher.

The main Toronto index had plunged 250 points, led by sliding commodities as investors wondered if a sharp runup in prices since early March was justified.

Losses were widespread across the market and led by a drop of almost 4% in the energy sector as oil prices retreated almost US$1.50 a barrel. That loss was reversed this morning as the July crude contract moved up $1.53 to US$72.15 a barrel.

Part of the reason for the jump was a weakening U.S. currency, which fell against other currencies after Russian President Dimitri Medvedev said the world needed new reserve currencies.

That weakness helped send the Canadian dollar higher, up 0.68 of a cent to 88.99 cents US after losing more than a U.S. cent yesterday.

New York index futures also indicated a slightly higher open after also sustaining sharp losses yesterday.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 187 points as investors worried that a three-month rally would lose momentum. Traders are also concerned that a recovery in the U.S. economy might not be as strong as hoped.

They are also looking ahead to data on new home construction and industrial production later in the morning.

Asian markets tumbled overnight in the wake of the steep losses on North American markets.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average shed 2.9% even as the central bank said the country’s economic conditions “have begun to stop worsening”, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slid 1.8%.

“Yesterday’s thumping sell-off in both Europe and the U.S. has been followed by declines in Asia as investors seemingly grow ever more skeptical as to the validity of claims that the green shoots of recovery are anything more than prime fodder for bears to maul,” said Matt Buckland, a dealer at CMC Markets.

That skepticism was stoked Monday by some weak U.S. manufacturing figures, which diminished expectations about the speed of any recovery in the world’s largest economy.

Elsewhere, London’s FTSE 100 index gained 0.75%, Germany’s DAX was ahead 0.6% while the Paris CAC 40 rose 0.55%.

Meanwhile, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams has announced a tentative deal to develop Hibernia South, an offshore project estimated to contain 223 million barrels of oil.

Williams says the provincial government will acquire a 10% equity stake under the deal.

The development application was submitted in 2006 by the Hibernia Management and Development Corp., which includes ExxonMobil, Chevron, Petro-Canada (TSX:PCA), Norsk Hydro, Murphy Oil and Canada Hibernia Holding.

(The Canadian Press)

North American markets

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	Close	Change	YTD
Dow Jones	8,612.13	-187.13 or -2.13%	-1.87%
S&P 500	923.72	-22.49 or -2.38%	+2.27%
NASDAQ	1,816.38	-42.42 or -2.28%	+15.18%
TSX Composite	10,394.78	-250.18 or -2.35%	+15.66%

International markets

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	Open	Change	YTD
Nikkei	9,752.88	-286.79 or -2.86%	+10.08%
Hang Seng	18,165.50	-333.46 or -1.80%	+26.26%
SENSEX	14,957.91	+82.39 or +0.55%	+55.05%
FTSE 100	4,362.35	+36.34 or +0.84%	-1.62%
CAC 40	3,239.89	+20.31 or +0.63%	+0.68%
DAX	4,918.39	+28.45 or +0.58%	+2.25%

Bonds

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Bonds	$Current	$Previous	%Yield
Cdn. 10-year bond	102.03	102.10	3.51
Cdn. 30-year bond	117.89	118.09	3.94
U.S. 10-year bond	95.03	94.55	3.79
U.S. 30-year bond	94.67	93.69	4.58

Currency

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BoC Open	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.8899	0.8831
US $	1.1237	1.1324

Euro Spot Rate	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.6395	0.6402
Euro	1.5638	1.5621

Commodities

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Gold	AM	PM
London Gold Fix ($US)	$ 936.75	$932.25

Oil	Open	Change
WTI Crude Future (US)	$72.14	+$1.52 or +2.15%

(06/16/09)