World markets are mixed as Oracle’s weak quarterly report draws concern. This comes amid a resurgence in AI bubble fears, a forecasted rise in oil and gas production by Suncor Energy, and a positive outlook for certain sectors by RBC analysts. Various key economic and market themes are projected to dominate 2026, while the phenomenon of “doubling up” in the housing market is analyzed.
RBC Analysts’ Top Picks in Power, Utilities, and Infrastructure Sectors
According to Scott Barlow’s article, the research team at RBC Capital Markets has provided their best ideas in the global power, utilities, and infrastructure sector. The report gives a comprehensive view of their top stock ideas across multiple geographies such as North America, Europe, and Australia, and various infrastructure sub-sectors like regulated utilities, power generation, midstream, clean energy, and transport infrastructure.
The team anticipates a supportive environment to continue into 2026, driven by positive secular trends impacting existing footprints and accelerating new regulated or long-term contracted growth projects. They believe companies with established infrastructure footprints or regulated monopolies will benefit the most by leveraging their asset bases to drive improved profitability and capture high-return growth opportunities.
Canadian top picks include Altagas, Brookfield Infrastructure, Capital Power, Brookfield Renewable Partners LP, Northland Power, Keyera Corp., and Pembina Pipeline.
Economic and Market Themes Dominating 2026
Scotiabank strategists Hugo Ste-Marie and Jean-Michel Gauthier have listed ten economic and market themes which they think will dominate 2026. These include a positive outlook on U.S. GDP, the resilience of U.S. consumers, plans for Canadian economic growth, the broadening of AI, a promising year for small caps, a potential rally for LatAm equities, unappealing government bonds in the absence of a macro downturn, and the continued rise of commodities. They also expect the CAD to benefit from the closing interest rate differential between the BoC and Fed.
Implications of “Doubling Up” in the Housing Market
CIBC deputy chief economist Benjamin Tal has assessed the implications of “doubling up” in the domestic housing market – a situation where extended relations, multiple families, and unrelated persons reside within the same dwelling. He suggests that an already high rate of doubling up is even higher than currently reflected in the census due to the undercounting of non-permanent residents and the misallocation of students. This trend might establish a price floor faster than currently anticipated due to improved affordability caused by falling prices or rent.
Rise in Oil and Gas Production Forecasted by Suncor Energy
Suncor Energy has forecasted a rise in oil and gas production in 2026. The Canadian energy producer expects to boost output from its oil sands assets, with upstream production estimated to be between 840,000 and 870,000 barrels per day next year. This is an increase from the 2025 production estimates of 810,000 to 840,000 barrels per day. The company also projects a decrease in capital expenditure for 2026.
Oracle’s Weak Forecast Revives AI Bubble Fears
Oracle’s shares slumped nearly 11% in premarket trading after its downbeat forecasts and higher capex revived worries that its massive AI investments are taking longer than expected to pay off. The company warned that capital expenditures for fiscal 2026 are now expected to be $15 billion higher than the $35 billion estimated in September during its first-quarter earnings call. This has sparked concern amongst investors, who are closely examining major cloud companies’ earnings reports for signs of an AI bubble fueled by heavy spending, high valuations, and limited real-world productivity gains.
