Source: The Canadian Press

Stock markets appeared set to open lower Tuesday after some fresh concerns about the health of European banks rattled overseas markets.

European markets took a hit after a report in the Wall Street Journal said the continent’s major banks have more potentially risky government debt on their books than was disclosed during stress tests earlier this year.

Meanwhile, the Financial Times said Germany’s Top Ten banks will have to raise as much as 105 billion euros to meet new capital requirements.

Lower oil prices are also expected to pressure the Toronto stock market.

The October crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange tumbled $1.65 to US$72.95 a barrel as the U.S. dollar rose against the euro and investors assessed the strength of both the U.S. economy and demand for crude.

The greenback’s surge against the euro pushed down oil prices by making crude more expensive for investors trading in the weakening currencies.

Meanwhile, the December gold contract gained $6 to US$1,257.10 an ounce as jittery investors moved into the safe haven investment following a report Friday that the jobless rate south of the border rose in August to 9.6% from 9.5% in July.

Markets in Canada and the U.S. were closed Monday for the Labour Day holiday.

The Canadian dollar slipped 0.28 cents to 95.97 cents US ahead of the Bank of Canada’s interest rate announcement on Wednesday.

Economists say there’s a 50-50 chance the central bank will raise rates by another quarter point when it makes its announcement Wednesday, reflecting a slowdown in the Canadian and particularly the U.S. economies over the last quarter.

The Bank of Canada has raised rates from an historic low of 0.25% twice this year, in June and July, as the Canadian economy mended from recession faster than just about any other country.

On Wall Street, stock markets also appeared set to open lower. Futures on the S&P 500 lost 7.30 points to 1,096.20, while Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 62 points to 10,374. On the Nasdaq, futures slipped 10 points to 1,857 ahead of the opening bell.

Investors could be taking their cues from overseas because there are few domestic economic reports due out this week that could sway traders. A barrage of mostly better-than-anticipated economic data sent stocks sharply higher last week.

Overseas, Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.9%, Germany’s DAX index dropped 0.8%, and France’s CAC-40 fell 1.3%. Japan’s Nikkei stock average fell 0.8%.