The so-called “Trump trade” did little to drive global stocks higher as investors tried to assess what parts of the giant US economy would benefit from the tax cuts proposed by the president.

The Canadian economy shrank again in the second quarter, putting the country in recession for the first time since the financial crisis, with a plunge in oil prices spurring companies to chop business investment.

Wall Street’s fixation with oil prices left stocks little changed today, although investors managed to react stoically to the government’s report of a drop in crude inventories.