U.S. stock futures pointed to a flat open for Monday as traders mulled over a sharp drop in profit at global banking giant Citigroup Inc.

Citigroup posted a 57% slump in third-quarter net income, in line with the banking giant’s recent warning. Chairman and CEO Charles Prince vowed to focus on the firm’s weak points.

In today’s economic news, Statistics Canada said the composite leading index rose 0.4% in September, a slight improvement on its 0.3% gain in August. More importantly, the index showed little or no effect from the turmoil in some parts of financial markets that began in mid-August.

Separately, StatsCan said new motor vehicle sales advanced 2.8% in August, partially offsetting three months of declines.

The Canadian dollar opened at US102.72¢, down 0.04 of a cent from Friday’s close.

The Bank of Canada is widely expected to stand pat when it announces its latest decision on interest rates on Tuesday.

In M&A news, industrial conglomerate Danaher agreed to a US$2.8 billion purchase of electronic test and measurement company Tektronix.

In other earnings news, Royal Philips Electronics posted a sharp decline in third-quarter profit, reflecting the year-ago sale of its semiconductor unit.

Toy maker Mattel posted a 0.9% drop in quarterly profit on charges related to major toy recalls that have rocked the company’s reputation.

Crude-oil prices hit a record high Monday, with the November light-crude contract adding $1.06 to US$84.75 a barrel,

Gold prices added more than US$8 an ounce in electronic trading, with the front-month futures contract touching US$762.40, its highest level in close to 28 years.

European shares held broadly flat Monday, with the United Kingdom’s FTSE 100 index slipping 0.1% and the French CAC 40 index adding 0.1%.

In Asia, indexes were mostly higher, with gains in oil and blue-chip stocks driving Chinese markets to record closes and Japan’s Nikkei 225 rising 0.16%.

On Friday, Toronto stocks ended higher, buoyed by gains in the resource sectors and in the information technology group.

The S&P/TSX composite index gained 66.42 points, or 0.47%, to 14,295.86.

For the week, the benchmark index rose 0.44%.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index gained 42.93, or 1.47%, to 2,961.90.

In New York, markets moved up driven by a takeover bid in the software sector, data showing strength in consumer spending.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 77.96 points, or 0.56%, to 14,093.08, the Nasdaq composite index rose 33.48, or 1.21%, to 2,805.68 and the S&P500 lifted 7.39, or 0.48%, to 1,561.80.

For the week, the Dow gained 0.2%, the S&P 500 rose 0.3% and the Nasdaq advanced 0.9%.