Futures for Canada's main index were higher on Friday following suggestions from U.S. President Donald Trump that a military strike on Syria may not be imminent and ahead of first-quarter results.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 11.37 points to conclude Thursday’s session at 15,269.27
The Canadian dollar climbed 0.13 cents to 79.56 cents U.S. early Friday
June futures moved up but 0.1% Friday.
Credit Suisse raised target price on Canadian Pacific Railway to $204 from $200.
Barclays raised the rating on Shaw Communications to overweight from equal weight.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange added 4.66 points Thursday to 782.37
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures posted minor gains ahead of Friday's open as earnings season kicked
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 79 points, or 0.3%, to 24,538
S&P 500 futures picked up eight points, or 0.3%, to 2,672, while futures for the NASDAQ composite index increased 8.25 points, or 0.1%, to 6,679
Markets have been on edge in recent days after Trump appeared to criticize the Kremlin for its supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad, following a suspected chemical attack last weekend.
Facebook remains in the spotlight. Earlier this week, CEO Mark Zuckerberg testified twice on Capitol Hill, where he faced questions surrounding the social media giant's guiding principles and legal obligations.
The company has suffered a wave of bad press following allegations that research firm Cambridge Analytica had improperly gained access to the personal information of up to 87 million users.
In corporate news, J.P. Morgan Chase reported better-than-expected quarterly results, sending its shares higher by 1% Citigroup is also scheduled to report earnings on Friday.
On the data front, consumer sentiment and the job openings and labour turnover survey (JOLTS) are both due out at 10 a.m. ET. Meanwhile, three officials from the U.S. Federal Reserve are due to deliver remarks at separate events.
Overseas, international markets posted minor gains Friday, as concerns surrounding Syria eased somewhat.
For example, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 popped 0.6%, but in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index dipped 0.1%.
Oil prices slipped 12 cents to $66.95 U.S. per barrel.
Gold prices settled $2.40 to $1,339.50 U.S. an ounce.
