TSX Opens Lower Amid Oil Surge and Tech Selloff

The TSX opened lower on Monday due to a jump in oil prices and weakness in global technology shares. The S&P/TSX Composite Index opened at 35,621.71, down 75.78 points or 0.21%. Canada's annual inflation rate held steady at 3% in August, while consumer prices fell 0.1% month over month.

The inflation report offered a mixed signal for the Bank of Canada. Core measures remained close to the central bank's 2% target, suggesting underlying price pressures have not broadened substantially. However, firmer energy prices remain a risk, particularly with Brent crude above $100 a barrel.

Rising oil prices can support Canada's energy-heavy TSX but also risk keeping inflation elevated and complicating the outlook for interest rates. Meanwhile, AI-related weakness was weighing on global equity sentiment after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for a slower pace of AI development. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and xAI's Elon Musk backed his concerns.