Canadian stock index futures edged up, supported by stronger oil prices.
The S&P/TSX Composite leaped 155.73 points, or 1.1%, to end Tuesday at 14,752.25
The Canadian dollar gained 0.09 cents to 76.37 cents U.S. early Wednesday.
Laurentian Bank of Canada is reportedly setting up an energy investment banking team in Calgary, Alberta's oil capital.
A senior company official said Laurentian Bank had been seeking an opportunity to open an energy-focused banking arm for years and the prolonged slump in Canadian oil and gas offered a chance to jump into the industry at a low point in the cycle.
CIBC raised the target price on Descartes Systems Group to $25.5 from $22.25 believing that the company may now be considering larger deals, with the logistics market in the midst of consolidation.
Among those announcing earnings results, Canadian Pacific Railway expects Q3 earnings of $2.79 per share
Corus Entertainment projects Q4 earnings of 15 cents per share
Mullen Group expects Q3 earnings of 13 cents per share
The Bank of Canada rate announcement is set for 10 a.m. Wednesday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange sprang up 11.36 points, or 1.5%, Tuesday to 783.64
ON WALL STREET
U.S. stock futures were a tad mixed Wednesday, alongside European markets.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials gained 23 points, or 0.1%, to 18,087, while futures for the S&P 500 picked up 2.1 points, or 0.1%, to 2,134. NASDAQ futures faded 0.25 points at 4,826.75.
Tesla is set to make a highly anticipated product announcement on Wednesday. CEO Elon Musk said in a tweet that the product was "unexpected by most."
It's a big day for earnings and economic reports.
Morgan Stanley, U.S. Bancorp, Abbott Labs and Halliburton are posting quarterly updates ahead of the opening bell.
American Express, Kinder Morgan, eBay, Mattel, Tractor Supply and BJ's Restaurants will report after the market closes.
Shares in Intel are dropping by about 5% pre-market as investors react to its latest earnings, which came out Tuesday afternoon.
On the economic front, the U.S. Census Bureau is releasing new September housing data this morning.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration is reporting weekly crude oil inventory data at 10:30 a.m. ET.
And then the Federal Reserve will release its Beige Book for October at 2 p.m.
Asian markets were mostly up, as official data released Wednesday showed China's economy grew 6.7% in the third quarter.
That's exactly the same pace of growth as the previous two quarters and right in line with economists' forecasts.
Oil prices added 75 cents to $51.04 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices boosted $9.30 to $1,272.20 U.S. an ounce.
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