"Latest News and Trends: Updates on Alberta Elections, US Debt Ceiling Deal, Climate Change, and More"

2023-05-26 16:51:17

NEWS ESSENTIALS

• Calgary, Canada’s oil capital, will be at the center of Alberta’s elections. The city of Calgary, considered Canada’s oil capital, will be a crucial battleground in Alberta’s provincial election on Monday, as latest polls suggest Rachel Notley’s more left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) on the political scale, holds a slight advantage in the city.

• US: Biden and McCarthy want two-year debt ceiling deal. The White House and Republicans in Congress are finalizing a deal that will raise the US government’s debt ceiling for two years from the current US$31.4 trillion, while limiting spending in all areas except armed forces and veterans services, according to a government official.

• Climate change: Norway is stepping up the pressure on the major oil companies. Pressure mounts on big oil, as Norway’s sovereign wealth fund says it will vote against Chevron and Exxon executives and as French police lash out at climate protesters during the General Meeting of TotalEnergies.

• OpenAI reconsiders its threat and declares that it has no intention of leaving Europe. Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, has asserted that his company has no intention of leaving Europe, going back to the threat he made earlier this week to leave the region if he did. became too difficult to comply with future laws on artificial intelligence.

• Nippon Steel is still in talks with Teck for a coking coal asset. Nippon Steel is still in talks with Teck Resources despite Glencore’s bid for the Canadian miner as Japan’s top steelmaker remains keen to take a stake in Teck’s high-grade coking coal asset, according to a senior executive.

TRENDS BEFORE OPENING

Futures contracts for the main Canadian stock index are up slightly due to the advance in commodity prices. Wall Street futures are gaining some ground as investors steer clear of big bets ahead of the end of talks on raising the debt ceiling despite recent progress. European stocks are slightly ahead, benefiting from gains in the mining and technology sectors. The Japanese Nikkei ended the session in positive territory. Oil prices are flat due to mixed messages sent by Russia and Saudi Arabia ahead of the meeting of OPEC members and their allies. Gold prices are slightly ahead, benefiting from a weaker US dollar.