Monthly Market Overview May 2026
LAST MONTH’S ECONOMIC EVENTS
- U.S. Employment Increased by 178,000 Jobs
- U.S. Unemployment Rate Decreased to 4.3%
- Canadian Employment Increased by 14,100 Jobs
- Canada’s Unemployment Rate Unchanged at 6.7%
- U.S. Annual Inflation Rate Increased to 3.3%
- Canada’s Annual Inflation Rate Increased to 2.4%
- U.S. Monthly Retail Sales Increased by 1.7%
- Canada’s Monthly Retail Sales Increased by 0.6%
- U.S. First Quarter GDP Growth Rate Initial Estimate Increased to 2.0%
- U.S. Federal Funds Rate Unchanged at 3.75%
- Canada’s Overnight Rate Unchanged at 2.25%
THIS MONTH’S UPCOMING ECONOMIC EVENTS
- May 8: U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics Non-Farm Payroll (8:30)
- May 8: U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics Unemployment Rate (8:30)
- May 8: Statistics Canada Employment Change (8:30)
- May 8: Statistics Canada Unemployment Rate (8:30)
- May 12: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis Inflation Rate (8:30)
- May 14: U.S. Census Bureau Retail Sales (8:30)
- May 22: Statistics Canada Inflation Rate (8:30)
- May 22: Statistics Canada Retail Sales (8:30)
- May 28: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis First Quarter GDP Quarterly Growth Rate Second Estimate (8:30)
- May 29: Statistics Canada First Quarter GDP Quarterly Growth Rate Initial Estimate (8:30)
1 (Source: Bank of Canada)
2(Source: Statistics Canada)
3(Source: United States Bureau of Labour Statistics)
4(Source: United States Bureau of Economic Analysis)
5(Source: United States Federal Reserve)
6(Source: United Census Bureau)
| Last Month’s Market Activity (for April 2026) | ||||
| Monthly Change | 2026 Change | 12 Month Change | Ending Value | |
| GLOBAL STOCK MARKETS | ||||
| S&P/TSX Composite (Canada) | 6.35% | 7.1% | 36.72% | 33964.33 |
| Dow Jones Industrial Avg. (U.S) | 9.81% | 3.31% | 22.09% | 49652.14 |
| S&P 500 (U.S.) | 13.64% | 5.31% | 29.45% | 7209.01 |
| Nasdaq Composite (U.S.) | 19.71% | 7.1% | 42.68% | 24892.31 |
| FTSE 100 (U.K) | 2.48% | 4.51% | 22.18% | 10378.82 |
| Dax (Germany) | 7.67% | -0.81% | 7.98% | 24292.38 |
| CAC 40 (France) | 4.41% | -0.43% | 6.86% | 8114.84 |
| Nikkei 225 (Japan) | 14.26% | 17.77% | 64.47% | 59284.92 |
| Nifty 50 (India) | 7.46% | -8.16% | -1.38% | 23997.55 |
| Shanghai Composite (China) | 4.81% | 3.61% | 25.41% | 4112.16 |
| Hang Seng Index (Hong Kong) | 4.14% | 0.57% | 16.53% | 25776.53 |
| BOND YIELDS & MORTGAGE RATE (UNITED STATES) | ||||
| 1 Year Treasury Bill Yield – U.S. | 1.0% | 6.54% | -3.9% | 3.699% |
| 2 Year Treasury Bill Yield – U.S. | 1.89% | 11.21% | 7.52% | 3.865% |
| 5 Year Treasury Bill Yield – U.S. | 1.5% | 7.4% | 7.69% | 4.003% |
| 10 Year Treasury Bill Yield – U.S. | 1.18% | 4.86% | 5.2% | 4.371% |
| 30 Year Mortgage Rate (Average) – U.S. | -2.13% | 1.49% | -7.3% | 6.346% |
| BOND YIELDS & PRIME RATE (CANADA) | ||||
| 1 Year Bond Yield – Canada | 0.79% | 10.82% | 4.48% | 2.684% |
| 2 Year Bond Yield – Canada | 4.97% | 14.5% | 19.04% | 2.959% |
| 5 Year Bond Yield – Canada | 4.02% | 9.61% | 19.06% | 3.189% |
| 10 Year Bond Yield – Canada | 2.92% | 3.22% | 15.16% | 3.543% |
| Prime Rate – Canada | 0.0% | 0.0% | -10.1% | 4.45% |
| CURRENCY RATES | ||||
| Canada/US Dollar | 2.41% | 1.01% | 1.56% | $0.736 |
| Euro/US Dollar | 1.54% | -0.13% | 3.53% | $1.173 |
| US Dollar/Indian Rupee | 1.37% | 5.43% | 12.06% | ₹ 94.762 |
| US Dollar Japanese Yen | -1.34% | -0.05% | 9.46% | ¥156.601 |
| US Dollar/Chinese Yuan | -1.03% | -2.37% | -6.1% | ¥6.828 |
| Bitcoin/USD | 12.08% | -12.73% | -18.93% | $76,399.00 |
| FOODS/GRAINS | ||||
| Coffee ($USD/lbs.) | -4.24% | -18.08% | -28.71% | $2.857 |
| Cocoa ($USD/Metric Ton) | 7.94% | -41.27% | -59.92% | $3,562.000 |
| Orange Juice ($USD/lbs.) | -1.37% | -6.86% | -29.85% | $1.874 |
| Sugar ($USD/lbs.) | -5.86% | -2.66% | -15.3% | $0.146 |
| Wheat (USD/Bushel) | 3.49% | 25.79% | 20.16% | $6.378 |
| Corn ($USD/Bushel) | 3.71% | 7.84% | -0.16% | $4.748 |
| Oats ($USD/Bushel) | -1.76% | 15.04% | -2.32% | $3.480 |
| Milk ($USD/lbs.) | -0.86% | 13.01% | -6.37% | $0.172 |
| MATERIALS | ||||
| Lumber ($USD/1000 Board feet) | -5.83% | 6.41% | 2.87% | $573.000 |
| Cotton ($USD/lbs.) | 17.43% | 27.9% | 24.51% | $0.822 |
| ENERGY | ||||
| Crude Oil (WTI – $USD/Barrel) | 3.98% | 83.58% | 81.09% | $105.410 |
| Natural Gas ($USD/MM British Thermal Units) | -4.37% | -11.88% | -24.13% | $2.758 |
| METALS | ||||
| Gold ($USD/Troy Ounce) | -0.91% | 6.79% | 39.67% | $4,635.900 |
| Silver ($USD/Troy Ounce) | -0.92% | 5.14% | 126.12% | $74.230 |
| Copper ($USD/lbs.) | 7.37% | 6.09% | 30.79% | $6.028 |
| Aluminum ($USD/Metric Ton) | 1.68% | 15.96% | 49.18% | $3,446.750 |
| Steel ($USD/Metric Ton) | -0.8% | 0.0% | 2.0% | $3,105.000 |
| REAL ESTATE | ||||
| Greater Toronto – Real Estate (Composite)1 | 0.3% | -0.1% | -7.4% | $941,800.00 |
| Canada – Real Estate (Composite)1 | 0.5% | 0.7% | -4.7% | $664,400.00 |
| COLLECTIBLES | ||||
| Fine Wine 100 Index2 | -0.3% | 0.2% | 1.4% | 320.2 |
1 Canadian Real Estate Association Composite Prices ending March 31, 2026.2 Liv-ex Fine Wine 100 Index ending March 31, 2026.* Data provided by FactSet unless otherwise stated as of April 30, 2026 4:30 PM EST.* This information has been prepared by Desmond Rubie, BCom, FCSI®, CIM®, CFP®, who is a Wealth Advisor for Rubie Wealth Management Group at iA Private Wealth.*Opinions expressed in this article are those of Desmond Rubie, BCom, FCSI®, CIM®, CFP® only and do not necessarily reflect those of iA Private Wealth Inc. *IA Private Wealth Inc. is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization. iA Private Wealth is a trademark and business name under which iA Private Wealth Inc. operates.  Desmond Rubie, BCom, FCSI®, CIM®, CFP® Wealth Advisor Rubie Wealth Management Group | iA Private Wealth Insurance Advisor | iA Private Wealth Insurance* 26 Wellington Street East, 2nd Floor, Toronto, ON M5E 1S2 T: 647-429-3281 ext. 240018 Desmond.Rubie@iaprivatewealth.ca Schedule a Meeting rubiewealth.com iaprivatewealth.ca Fellow of CSI (FCSI®) iA Private Wealth Inc. is a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization. iA Private Wealth is a trademark and business name under which iA Private Wealth Inc. operates. *Insurance products are provided through iA Private Wealth Insurance, which is a trade name of PPI Management Inc. Only products and services offered through iA Private Wealth Inc. are covered by the Canadian Investor Protection Fund. |
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