Canadian stocks were set to open lower on Thursday after a sharp fall in crude prices.
The S&P/TSX composite index dipped 71.86 points to close Wednesday at 15,212.75, with Thursday futures down 0.1%.
The Canadian dollar fell 0.49 cents to 79.80 cents U.S. early Thursday.
Barrick Gold said on Wednesday it will sell its Porgera mine in Papua New Guinea and its Cowal mine in Australia to help reduce net debt by at least $3 billion by year-end, giving investors a long-awaited glimpse into its strategy.
Protracted contract talks between Canadian National Railway and the union that represents 4,800 of its mechanical, clerical and intermodal staff are at an impasse, and the union says it is considering a strike vote.
Bofa Merrill cut the rating on Restaurant Brands to neutral from buy
Raymond James raised the rating on Trinidad Drilling to outperform from market perform
PI Financial cut the rating on Timmins Gold to neutral from buy
Economically speaking, Statistics Canada reported that those of us receiving regular employment insurance in December totaled 495,300, up 0.7% from the month before. Compared with December 2013, the number of beneficiaries fell 24,500 or 4.7%.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 0.38 points Wednesday to 698.05
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures are taking a small step back and European markets are mixed in early trading.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials slid 23 points, or 0.1%, to 17,970. Futures for the S&P 500 faded four points, or 0.2%, to 2,091.50, and futures for the NASDAQ took on two points, or 0.1%, to 4,388.
Walmart, DirecTV and Priceline are reporting earnings before the opening bell.
Intuit and Nordstrom will report after the close.
On the economic front, the U.S. government posted weekly jobless claims this morning.
Shares in Air France-KLM were declining by about 5% in Europe after the company reported full-year results. The company struggled last year as pilots went on strike for an extended period.
The European Central Bank is set to publish minutes from its January meeting, giving investors insight into the historic decision to launch a large scale, money-printing program. Markets will be curious to see how united the central bankers were during their discussions.
Greece has asked its group of European creditors to give it a six-month loan extension, according to a tweet by the head of the Eurogroup, Jeroen Dijsselbloem.
Greece's current bailout program expires on February 28 and markets have been concerned that the country is going to run out of money and could exit the euro-zone.
Oil prices plummeted 4% to $50.07 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices hiked 1.7% to $1,220.10 U.S. an ounce.
Related Stories
