Canadian stock futures pointed to a lower open for Canada's main stock index on Thursday as investors digested trade balance data for May.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index advanced 22.51 points to end Wednesday at 15,153.12. September futures dwindled 0.3% early Thursday.
The Canadian dollar moved up 0.11 cents to 77.29 cents early Thursday
Barclays cut the target price on Canadian Natural Resources to $34.00 from $50.00
CIBC raised the price target on Canadian Pacific Railway to $222.00 from $220.00
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported our merchandise trade deficit with the world reached $1.1 billion in May, up from a $552-million deficit in April. Imports rose 2.4% and exports were up 1.3%.
The agency also said Canadian municipalities issued $7.7 billion worth of building permits in May, up 8.9% from April and the third highest value on record. The national increase was mainly the result of higher construction intentions for residential buildings, particularly in Ontario.
Seven provinces registered gains in the total value of building permits in May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange lost 1.25 points Wednesday to 762.80
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Thursday, led by a fall in technology stocks, as traders awaited a fresh batch of economic data.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials slumped 58 points, or 0.3%, to 21,364. Futures for the S&P 500 slipped 8.25 points, or 0.3%, to 2,419.75. NASDAQ futures doffed 47 points, or 0.8%, to 5,604.50, with Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Alphabet all trading lower before the bell.
Shares of Tesla also fell in the pre-market as a new set of crash tests raised questions about the safety of the company's Model S. The stock has fallen more than 10% this week and is down 17% from its June all-time high.
On the data front, a report from ADP and Moody's Analytics showed the U.S. economy added 158,000 jobs last month, less than the expected 185,000. The report usually serves as a warm-up act for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' monthly employment report, which is set for release Friday.
Later on Thursday morning, trade balance data for May and Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index for June are both scheduled before or at 10 a.m.
European markets dipped sharply early Thursday afternoon, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 docked 0.4% and Shanghai’s CSI 300 eked up 0.42 points.
Oil prices gained 73 cents to $45.86 U.S. per barrel.
Gold prices hiked $3.20 to $1,224.90 U.S. an ounce.
