The Toronto stock market headed for a third day of losses Thursday as a disappointing Spanish government bond auction put the European debt crisis back on centre stage.
On the corporate front, Harry Winston Diamond Corp. reports consolidated fourth-quarter net profit attributable to shareholders of $16.6 million U.S. or 19 cents per diluted share, compared with $13.7 million U.S. or 16 cents in the prior-year period. Consolidated sales for the three months ended Jan. 31 were $216 million U.S., up from $215.4 million U.S.
Fibrek Inc. is asking the Supreme Court of Canada to rule on the defence it has used to fend off a hostile takeover. At issue is the Quebec company’s decision to issue special warrants to its ally, Mercer International Inc., to thwart a takeover by Resolute Forest Products.
ON BAYSTREET
The S&P/TSX Composite Index tumbled 144.95 points, or 1.2%, to end Wednesday at 12,178.66
The TSX Venture Exchange fell 46.49 points to 1,499.14, while the Nasdaq Canada index slid 8.82 points to 402.36
The Canadian dollar gained 0.25 cents this morning to 100.62 cents U.S.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures were down with about half an hour before markets open, suggesting that stocks will fall at the start of trading. Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average were down 45 points, or 0.4%, to 12,960. Futures for the broader S&P 500 were down 3.70 points or 0.3%, to 1,389.50, and for the tech-rich Nasdaq, futures were up two points, or 0.1%, to 2,738.50
In Europe, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 was down 0.4% and Germany's DAX index was down 1% in afternoon trading.
The downturns come as investors continue to focus on Spain. The country met with a tepid response to a government bond sale on Wednesday, and on Thursday its borrowing costs continued to climb, raising concerns about whether it is heading into a financial crisis.
The yield on the Spanish 10-year government bond rose to 5.8%, its highest level since mid-December, when Greece was struggling to avoid a messy default on its debt obligations.
However, commodity prices moved slightly higher on Thursday morning. Crude oil rose to $101.77 U.S. a barrel, up 0.3%. Gold rose to $1,625 U.S. an ounce, up 0.7%.
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