Futures for Canada's main stock index edged up on Thursday, as oil prices steadied after the first round of U.S. sanctions against Iran came into effect.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index stayed afloat 28.78 points to end Wednesday at 16,315.08
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.14 cents at 76.68 cents U.S. early Thursday
September futures nicked up 0.05% Thursday
Canada Goose reported a smaller-than-expected first-quarter loss, amid growing revenue from its direct-to-consumer business.
Canadian Tire Corp. reported a 20% fall in quarterly profit, as the company ramped up investments in its stores and online business.
Teck Resources said on Wednesday it had received regulatory approval for its $4.8-billion Phase 2 project at its Quebrada Blanca copper mine in northern Chile, a sprawling expansion that will boost production from the deposit to 300,000 tonnes of copper annually.
Two of Canada's biggest insurance companies, Manulife Financial and Sun Life, on Wednesday reported second-quarter earnings which beat market expectations, benefiting in part from strong growth in Asia.
Canaccord Genuity raised its rating on Stantec Inc. to buy from hold, and the target price to $37.00 from $34.00
Canaccord Genuity raised the price target on Solium Capital to $14.00 from $12.75
Desjardins raised the target price on Goeasy Ltd. to $55.00 from $48.00
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada’s new housing price index increased in June, marking the first upward movement since November 2017.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said the trend in housing starts was 219,988 units in July 2018, compared to 221,738 units in June 2018.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 2.04 points to close Wednesday to 698.82
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures barely budged prior to the start of Thursday's trading session, ahead of another batch of corporate earnings.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials gained 21 points, or 0.1%, to 25,557
S&P 500 futures took on three points, or 0.1%, to 2,858.25, while futures for the NASDAQ composite inched up 0.25 points to 7,471.75.
Entering Thursday's session, the S&P 500 was just 0.5% away from reaching 2,872.87, a record high set on Jan. 26.
On Wednesday, U.S. Treasury yields came under pressure after Beijing announced it would counter the most recent round of U.S. tariffs with its own. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced a 25% charge on $16 billion worth of U.S. goods. In total, 333 goods have been picked out by China, including vehicles, various types of fuels, recyclables and fiber optical cables.
However, strong earnings from Adidas, Roku, and Yelp after the close of trading Wednesday helped to offset concerns about the escalating trade spat.
In other corporate news, Norwegian Cruise Line reported quarterly earnings that topped analyst expectations on Thursday. The stock jumped more than 4%.
Key economic data scheduled for today includes jobless claims and producer price index (PPI) data, both due out at 8:30 a.m. ET, followed by wholesale trade at 10 a.m. ET.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 lessened 0.2% while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index sprang up 0.9%.
Oil prices eked up one cent to $66.95 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $1.90 to $1,222.90 U.S. an ounce.
