Toronto's main stock index looked set to open lower on Friday, after the Bundesbank slashed its growth outlook for Germany while caution ahead of November U.S. jobs data weighed on investor sentiment.
The S&P/TSX composite index settled back 6.16 points to close out Thusrday at 12,151.13. Canada stock futures traded down 0.2%
The Canadian dollar rocketed higher by 0.29 cents to 101.17 cents U.S. Friday morning.
Bank of Nova Scotia's quarterly profit rose 31%, driven by strong gains in wholesale and international banking.
Enbridge Inc. on Thursday proposed a $6.2-billion expansion of its oil pipeline system, aimed at moving surging volumes of light crude from Western Canada and the North Dakota Bakken to refineries in the eastern part of the continent and U.S. Midwest.
Harry Winston Diamond Corp. posted a profit as it sold more smaller-size diamonds but cut its full-year diamond production target as it defers the reprocessing of rejects to focus on higher-value carats.
WiLan Inc., the patent licensing company filed patent lawsuits against Apple Inc, HTC Corp and Sierra Wireless Inc's U.S. unit.
On the economic calendar, Statistics Canada reported this morning that employment rose in this country by 59,000 in November, the result of an increase in full-time work. The unemployment rate declined 0.2 percentage points to 7.2%, this after being fairly static in October.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange added 2.16 points Thursday to 1,186.70
ON WALLSTREET
Investors got a dose of good news Friday morning: The U.S. economy added more jobs than expected in November, and the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in four years.
The Dow Jones Industrials futures zoomed 67 points, or 0.5%, to 13,130, while S&P 500 futures improved 5.70 points, or 0.4%, to 1,418.70, and futures for the tech-rich Nasdaq gained 14.50 points, or 0.6%, to 2,668.50. This, after the U.S. Labor Department reported employers added 146,000 jobs in November, higher than the 77,000 jobs economists
Investors will also get a look at how consumers are spending, an important indicator of economic health since it accounts for more than two-thirds of the nation's economy. Reports on consumer sentiment and consumer credit are due out throughout the day.
Still, worries about the fiscal cliff and ongoing back and forth wrangling in Washington will continue to keep investors on edge.
On the corporate front, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission for posting information about the company on his Facebook page that he hadn't disclosed to the SEC. Shares edged lower in pre-market trading.
Shares of Smith & Wesson Holding Corp. rose 2% after the gun maker reported strong quarterly earnings results and boosted its full-year outlook.
European markets were lower in morning trading, after Germany's Bundesbank cut its growth forecasts and warned there was a risk of Europe's biggest economy dipping into recession in early 2013. The U.S. dollar was firmer against the euro.
Asian markets ended mixed. The Shanghai Composite performed best, adding 1.6%.
Oil prices doffed a penny a barrel to $86.25 U.S.
Gold prices lost $1.80 an ounce to $1,700 U.S.
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