Global shares struggled to push higher after a punishing sell-off in Asia, where unease over AI valuations has frayed nerves.

Wall Street futures were mixed, with Dow futures pointed lower, after the Dow and S&P 500 indexes ended higher on Tuesday.

TSX futures were in positive territory a day after Canada’s main stock index notched another record high.

In Canada, investors are getting results from Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd., Alamos Gold Inc., Atco Ltd., Athabasca Oil Corp., Bausch + Lomb Corp., Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd., Canadian Utilities Ltd., Capital Power Corp., CGI Inc., GFL Environmental Holdings Inc., Hudbay Minerals Inc., IGM Financial Inc., Ivanhoe Mines Ltd., Kinross Gold Corp., Secure Waste Infrastructure Corp., West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd., and Whitecap Resources Inc.

On Wall Street, markets are watching earnings from Lam Research Corp., Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp., Procter & Gamble Co., Qualcomm Inc., Robinhood Markets Inc. and Starbucks Corp.

With sentiment towards AI-linked chipmakers turning sharply negative amid mounting fears over competition from China, earnings from Microsoft and Meta will need to clear a high bar. Expectations have become so lofty that even a sixfold jump in SK Hynix’s quarterly profit fell short, leading to a 9.61 per cent drop in shares.

“The selloff in chip stocks looks overdone, but volatility should be expected whenever the market finds reasons to question the durability of the AI cycle,” said Jake Seltz, portfolio manager for the Empiric LT Equity team at Allspring Global Investments. “Expectations were so high that good numbers have not always been enough.”

Overseas, the pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.30 per cent in morning trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 0.07 per cent, Germany’s DAX shed 0.39 per cent and France’s CAC 40 fell 0.74 per cent.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.49 per cent lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 1.96 per cent.

Oil prices jumped after joint strikes in Iraq by the United States and Saudi Arabia, and the interception of Iran’s ballistic missiles aimed at U.S. forces in the Middle East, while U.S. crude inventories shrank.

Brent futures increased by 3.6 per cent to US$87.13 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 3.5 per cent to US$82.06.

“We believe Brent oil prices will continue to whipsaw in the $80-$100 per barrel range in the near term as the conflict ebbs and flows in the Middle East,” said Suvro Sarkar, head of energy research at DBS Bank. The situation has escalated since U.S. President Donald Trump signalled a return to diplomacy earlier in the week, he said.

In other commodities, spot gold gained 0.22 per cent to US$4,036.09 an ounce, while U.S gold futures for August delivery were steady at US$4,037.3.

The Canadian dollar strengthened against its U.S. counterpart.

The day range on the loonie was 70.86 US cents to 71.00 US cents in early trading. The Canadian dollar was up about 0.84 per cent against the greenback over the past month.

The U.S. dollar index, which weighs the greenback against a group of currencies, declined 0.07 per cent to 101.195. The dollar was pegged at $1.4101.

The euro climbed 0.09 per cent to US$1.1397. The British pound gained 0.07 per cent to US$1.33.

In bonds, the yield on the U.S. 10-year note was last up at 4.626 per cent.

1:30 p.m. ET: Bank of Canada summary of deliberations for the July 15 policy decision

2 p.m. ET: U.S. FOMC announcement on interest rates, followed by Fed chair Kevin Warsh’s press briefing

With Reuters and The Canadian Press