Equity markets in Toronto looked set for a lower start on Thursday as weak global manufacturing activity and an Ebola health scare in the United States spooked world markets.
The S&P/TSX composite index tumbled 155.07 points, or 1%, to finish Wednesday at 14,805.44, with Thursday futures down 0.1%.
The Canadian dollar added 0.14 cents to 89.72 cents U.S. early Thursday.
The index dropped to a near four-month low on Wednesday as worries about a slowdown in U.S. factory activity and news of the first confirmed case of Ebola in the United States fueled a broad selloff.
Struggling Sears Holdings Corp said it would raise up to $380 million U.S. by selling most of its stake in Sears Canada through a rights issue, generating liquidity ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season.
Canadian Pacific Railway aims to boost its annual revenue to $10 billion in 2018 and more than double earnings per share over the next four years, Chief Executive Hunter Harrison said on Wednesday.
Deutsche Bank raised the rating on Encana Corp. to buy
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange toppled 12.94 points Wednesday to 896.35.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures were looking weak Thursday after markets started the new month with a big decline.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials eked up six points to 16,746. Futures for the S&P 500 advanced 2.25 points, or 0.1%, to 1,943, and futures for the NASDAQ tacked on 5.25 points, or 0.1%, to 3,987.75,
Tesla CEO Elon Musk put out a tweet last night saying his company was set to "unveil the D and something else" on October 9.
Investors and car lovers were caught off guard, with many now expecting Tesla to reveal a new Model D car, alongside its Model S and Model X. But people are still guessing what the mysterious "something else" may be.
Tesla shares were edging higher ahead of the open.
Shares of DirecTV were rising in extended trading after the NFL said it was giving the satellite provider rights to continue carrying its popular NFL Sunday Ticket package for another eight years.
The U.S. government was to post weekly jobless claims this hour.
Investors are keen to hear from the president of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi. He holds a news conference in Italy this morning after the central bank's monthly meeting. Interest rates have been cut as low as they can go but markets are eager for more detail on an ECB program to buy some private sector loans -- announced last month.
Pressure is building on the ECB to go all-in with a Federal Reserve-style program to buy government bonds as some of Europe's largest economies falter.
However, most analysts do not expect any new initiatives Wednesday.
The euro-zone economy has stalled and inflation is the weakest it has been for nearly five years.
The major European markets were declining in early trading.
Oil prices fell $1.71 to $89.02 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices retreated $4.20 to $1,211.30 U.S. an ounce.
Related Stories
