Markets hold breath

Allan Tong Posted On August 18, 2025

The trading week began with no resolution reached by Trump and Putin over peace talks last weekend. Meanwhile, the market is awaiting interest rate remarks by U.S. Fed Chair, Jerome Powell, slated for Friday. The two developments put investors on edge and froze markets with the S&P flat, the Nasdaq up six points, the Dow down 34 and the TSX up 17. The U.S. 10-year yield was flat at 4.335%.

The big news in Canada is the bitter Air Canada strike after flight attendants defied a back-to-work order on the grounds that the airline pays them for unpaid work from now on. The beleagured AC sank 2.98% on Monday. Elsewhere, Brookfield Business Partners rallied 5.66%, Enegy Fuels 5.17%, Bausch Health -3.91%, and Bird Construction -2.69%. Gold declined US$3 to US$3,333 while WTI advanced half a dollar to US$63.30. On Wall Street, Dayforce rocketed 25.98% higher, First Solar 9.69%, Intel -3.66%, EQT -4.45% and Coterra -3.29%. Bitcoin slipped 1.18% to US$116,300.