Bay Street May Open Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - Canadian shares may track European markets and open slightly higher on Wednesday. The focus will be on U.S. Labor Department's preliminary revisions to labor data due later in the morning, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech at Jackson Hole on Friday.

Data on Canadian producer price inflation, and raw materials prices, both for the month of July, are due at 8:30 AM ET.

In corporate news, Bitfarms Ltd. (BITF.TO) announced today that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire Stronghold Digital Mining, Inc. (SDIG) in a stock-for-stock deal valued at approximately $125 million in equity, along with the assumption of $50 million in debt.

Despite data showing a drop in the nation's inflation in the month of July, the Canadian market snapped an eight-session winning streak and ended on a weak note on Tuesday, weighed down by losses in the energy sector.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 78.95 points or 0.34% at 23,037.44. The index, which edged up to 23,131.34 in early trades, touched a low of 22,994.27 in the session.

Asian stocks fluctuated before ending mixed on Wednesday as investors awaited cues on future rate cuts in the U.S.

Minutes of the Fed's July meeting due to be published later today ad Fed Chair Powell's keynote speech at Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday are expected to provide greater clarity on monetary policy easing.

After opening somewhat flat, European stocks are moving higher ahead of the release of Fed minutes, and preliminary revisions to U.S. labor data.

In commodities, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are up $0.11 or 0.13% at $73.28 a barrel.

Gold futures are down $1.00 or 0.04% at $2,549.60 an ounce, while Silver futures are gaining $0.136 or 0.45% at $29.655 an ounce.