(Reuters) – Futures tied to Canada’s main stock index fell slightly on Wednesday as Iran’s missile strike on Israel stoked fears of wider conflict in the Middle East.

December futures on the S&P/TSX index were down 0.1% at 6:05 a.m. ET (10:05 GMT).

Iran on Tuesday carried a ballistic missile strike on Israel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s also vowed to retaliate. Escalation of the conflict caused a wider selloff in global markets on Tuesday.

Investors are cautious due to lack of clarity on how the escalation in the region might evolve, but this lifted prices of oil and safe-haven assets like gold, as well as their related stocks.

Canada’s resource-heavy composite index defied the global slump by scaling a record high on Tuesday due to a rise in energy and mining stocks.

The energy sector could counter losses in the rest of the market on Wednesday as well after oil prices climbed more than 2% on concerns the escalating conflict could hurt crude output. [O/R]

The materials sector could take its cues from gold prices, which slipped against a firm dollar, and copper prices that gained on higher demand prospects due to China’s stimulus measures. [GOL/] [MET/L]

In corporate news, Capstone Copper said its 2024 consol copper production is likely to be near the lower end of its forecast range.

On Wednesday, investors will assess the U.S. private payrolls data at 08:15 a.m. ET to gauge the state of the country’s labor market.

COMMODITIES

Gold futures: $2,653.13; -0.3% [GOL/]

US crude: $71.68; +2.7% [O/R]

Brent crude: $75.36; +2.5% [O/R]

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($1 = 1.3488 Canadian dollars)

(Reporting by Nikhil Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo)