Canada's main stock index opened flat on Thursday, mirroring Wall Street trend after U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross' comment tampered early optimism on U.S.-China trade deal.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index inched back 3.21 points to start off Thursday’s session at 15,205.12
The Canadian dollar docked 0.01 cents to 74.94 cents U.S.
Bombardier said on Thursday it will buy a wing manufacturing unit from aircraft parts supplier Triumph Group Inc to boost its business jets program.
Bombardier shares lost three cents, or 1.5%, to $1.99.
Canadian Pacific Railway expects double-digit earnings growth in 2019, the country's second-biggest rail operator said on Wednesday, lifted by strong pricing and growing demand for shipments of crude and other commodities.
JP Morgan raised the price target on the carrier to $337.00 from $335.00. CP shares grew $5.15, or 2%, to $267.06.
Hydro One and its U.S.-based rival Avista Corp agreed to terminate their merger after failing to receive regulatory backing. Hydro One was unchanged at $20.22.
National Bank of Canada cut the price target on Great-West Lifeco to $31.00 from $37.00. Great-West shares doffed 95 cents, or 3.2%, to $28.37.
Canaccord Genuity cut the price target on Onex Corp. to $97.00 from $107.00. Onex shares lost 58 cents to $75.38.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada said those drawing regular employment insurance was virtually unchanged in November from a month earlier at 439,000, following three consecutive months of declines.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slid 1.75 points to 590.95
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive initially, as industrials and information technology each gained 0.7%, while consumer staples poked ahead 0.4%.
The five laggards were weighed most by energy and communications, each slouching 0.7%, while financials docked 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
The Dow Jones Industrial Average boasted only small gains on Thursday after Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said China and the U.S. were not close to striking a trade deal.
The 30-stock eked up 19.59 points to begin Thursday at 24,595.21
The S&P 500 was better by 5.22 points to 2,643.92, as the consumer staples sector dropped 1.4%
The NASDAQ Composite perked 48.23 points to 7,074
Ross told the media that the U.S. is “miles and miles” from a trade deal with China, adding the two countries have “lots and lots of issues.”
His comments come as China and the U.S. try to strike a trade deal before the beginning of March. If they don’t, additional U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods will come into effect. The two countries have been engaged in a trade war since last year.
Solid earnings reports helped lessen the blow from Ross’ comments on Thursday. Bristol-Myers Squibb, American Airlines and JetBlue were among the companies that posted better-than-expected earnings. Results from Citrix and Texas Instruments also topped estimates.
The earnings season continues later on Thursday, with Intel, Starbucks and Western Digital among the companies scheduled to report after the close.
Investors also kept an eye on Washington as the U.S. government shutdown entered its 34th straight day.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday that Democrats would block President Donald Trump from delivering his State of the Union address until the government reopened — an announcement that Trump complied with.
For now, the U.S. labour market appears to be holding up well. Weekly jobless claims fell to 199,000 last week, their lowest in 49 years.
Prices for the benchmark for the 10-year U.S. Treasury gained ground, lowering yields to 2.72% from Wednesday’s 2.75%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices inched up 14 cents to $52.76 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices slid $1.90 to $1,282.10 U.S. an ounce.
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