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Stock market indexes were mostly down on Monday morning after the Group of 20 meeting in Washington failed to convince investors that the leaders of the world's biggest economies would be able to prevent a global recession.
U.S. stock index futures were down with about an hour before markets open, suggesting that stocks will fall at the start of trading. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average fell 68 points, to 8303. Futures for the S&P 500 fell 7 points, to 855.
In Europe, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 fell 1.4 per cent and Germany's DAX index fell 1.8 per cent in afternoon trading.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.7 per cent in overnight trading – even though the economy has slipped into recession. Gross domestic product contracted by a surprise 0.4 per cent in the third quarter, annualized, versus an expectation among economists for a rise of 0.1 per cent. As well, the economy contracted by a revised 3.7 per cent in the second quarter.
Citigroup Inc. announced that it would eliminate 50,000 jobs, or 14 per cent of its work force – yet another sign that the financial sector in the United States is still reeling from the credit crisis that began more than a year ago. The job losses also suggest that unemployment levels throughout the economy, already rising sharply, will continue to march upward as the economy grinds slower.
In Canada, Petro-Canada announced that it will delay its decision to develop the $25-billion Fort Hills oil sands project in Alberta until next year – a delay that comes from rising costs and tumbling oil prices, a wicked combination that makes a number of new energy projects economically unfeasible.
Crude oil traded on Monday morning at $56.66 (U.S.) a barrel, down 38 cents. Still, some observers believe the recent delays will translate into lower energy production when the global economy snaps back into shape, which should be bullish for energy prices somewhere down the road.
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