Feb 5 (Reuters) - Futures tied to Canada's main stock index slipped on Thursday, pressured by sharp declines in precious metals and oil prices, as investors assessed a fresh round of earnings updates from Wall Street.
March futures on the S&P/TSX composite index SXFcv1 were down 0.12% as of 5:34 a.m. ET.
The benchmark index .GSPTSE ended a volatile session on a positive note on Wednesday, with gains for industrial and consumer-related shares offsetting jitters about AI potentially disrupting the business models of software companies.
TSX's mining stocks were set to grab the spotlight on Thursday amid a sharp decline for precious metals against a strong dollar and signs of easing U.S.-China trade tensions.
Spot gold XAU= was down 2.1%, retreating from a near one-week high hit earlier in the session, while spot silver XAG= dropped 11.2%.
Copper also joined the broader selloff, down as rising inventories and a stronger U.S. dollar raised demand concerns. GOL/ MET/L
Oil prices were also under pressure, with Brent crude futures LCOc1 and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 down about 1.4% each.
The declines come after the U.S. and Iran agreed to hold talks in Oman on Friday, easing concerns that a potential military conflict between them could disrupt supplies from the key Middle East producing region.
On Wall Street, futures tied to the S&P 500 index were steady as investors weighed overnight earnings from Alphabet GOOGL.O, a member of the so-called "Magnificent Seven."
Although the tech giant surpassed expectations, its increased capital spending target worried investors, sending the stock down 2.5% in premarket trading.
Back home, investors awaited quarterly results from luxury apparel maker Canada Goose GOOS.TO, scheduled for release later in the day.
The Canadian federal government is expected to announce its national automotive strategy on Thursday, replacing the country's electric vehicle mandate with new fuel-efficiency standards and credits, CBC News reported on Wednesday.
($1 = 1.3695 Canadian dollars)
(Reporting by Nikhil Sharma; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
((Nikhil.Sharma@thomsonreuters.com;))
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