Toronto's main stock index closed lower but performed a decent rebound of the bottom of the day as subgroups rallied, but the weight of falling commodities was a bit too much of a cross to bear as gold and oil pulled back today.
The S&P/TSX Composite closed down 55.79 points, or .45%, to 12,445.93.
The price of oil for November delivery is down; dropping 2.11% to $81.47.
Gold for December delivery is down this afternoon; down $11.60 to $1,334.80.
The Canadian Dollar is up against the US Dollar at the moment; up by .00037 of a cent to .9828 U.S. cents.
ON THE DATA FRONT --
Canadian building permits fell more than four times as much as expected in August, as companies and governments planned fewer new structures.
Statistics Canada reported that the total value of permits issues by municipalities decreased 9.2% to $5.75 billion. The drop was the largest since February 2009, and exceeded even the most pessimistic forecast which anticipated a 2% decline.
Non-residential construction permits dropped 23% to $2.2 billion while the value of permits for institutional buildings dropped 39%. The number of permits for institutions was hampered as Ontario cut intentions for hospitals and Quebec planned fewer schools, the report said.
Industrial buildings fell 12%, the third straight monthly decline, led by factories in Ontario and utilities in Alberta. Permits for commercial buildings also declined 12%, as firms planned fewer hotels, office buildings and laboratories.
CLOSING NEWS --
Sinochem Group, China's largest fertilizer company, is sketchy about whether it will be able to get state financial backing for a takeover of Potash Corp, which puts a serious damper on any deal possibilities.
Energy stocks slipped today as oil pulled back. Leading the laggards was Canadian Natural Resources, which finished the day down .9% at $37.58.
Commodity Laggards --
Barrick Gold Corp. fell 1.2%, Goldcorp Inc. dropped 2.9% and Suncor Energy Inc. shares gave back 1.4% today.
AFTERNOON NEWS --
Miners Slump -- Shares of Canadian mining giant Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (T.IVN) are a drag on the sector, declining 3.2%. Shares of Barrick Gold Corp. (T.ABX) have slid 1.4% today.
Downgraded --
Raymond James cut Air Canada’s (ACb.TO) rating to outperform from strong buy. Shares are down 1.29% to $3.07.
National Bank cut Husky Energy’s (HSE.TO) rating to underperform from sector perform. Shares are down 1.60%.
Upgraded --
National Bank raised its rating on Artek Exploration (RTK.TO) to sector perform from underperform. Shares are up .89%.
National Bank also raised its rating on Fairborne Energy (FEL.TO) to outperform from sector perform. Shares are .47%.
MORNING NEWS --
Teck Resources Ltd. announced that it and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd agreed to a 10-year contract for moving coal from 5 of Teck’s mines to the Pacific Coast. Shares of T.TCK.B are down 2.07% while shares of T.CP are up 1.22%.
Rogers Communications Inc -- Canada’s biggest wireless company announced yesterday that it launched an extensive technical trial of Long Term Evolution wireless network technology with Ericsson Canada. Shares of T.RCI.B are up .64% this morning.
Alamos Gold Inc’s third-quarter production fell 29% year-over-year, hindered by a long rainy season and processing related issues at its primary mine in Mexico. Shares are dropping this morning; down 3.04%.
Sandvine Corp stated this morning that it posted a third-quarter profit, helped by growth at its digital subscriber line and mobile access markets. Shares are climbing quickly today; up 6.09% with over 1 million shares traded.
ON BAYSTREET
Seven of the TSX Subgroups closed green today. Telecom closed up by .77%, followed by industrials; up .63% and then consumer discretionary issues, which finished up by .40%.
On the downside -- Gold issues closed down 2.28%, materials were down 1.63%, and metals and mining stocks lost 1.37%
The TSX Venture Exchange closed down by 8.30 points to 1765.76, while the Nasdaq Canada index finished in the red as well; down 3.29 points to 620.14.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks on Wall Street finished today's session lower, as investors are proceeding with caution and waiting for the key September jobs report tomorrow. The combination of earnings season kicking off, commodities falling and the possibility of decisions on monetary easing coming forth after the highly watched jobs report on Friday helped keep the markets at bay today.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down by 19.07 points, or .17% to 10,948.58. The S&P 500 finished down by 1.91 points, or .16%, to 1,158.06. The NASDAQ pushed north and finished slightly green; up by 3.01 points, or .13%, to 2,383.67.
The US Dollar is dropping against the euro by .001 and losing ground against the yen as well; down .5000.
Oil futures for November delivery are down $1.76 to $81.47.
The 10-year bond yield is down .0300 to 2.3960%.
DATA NEWS --
The United States Department of Labor published the Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending October 2, 2010 this morning which showed that initial jobless claims dropped by 11,000 to 445,000. Economists projected 455,000 new claims last week, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey. The total number of people receiving unemployment insurance decreased and those getting extended payments rose.
Rates on 30-year and 15-year mortgages fell to their lowest points in decades.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate for 30-year fixed loans dropped to 4.27%, down from 4.32% last week. This is the lowest on record dating back to 1971.
Natural Gas Storage Report --
The Energy Information Administration announced today that inventories increased by 85 billion cubic feet last week, with the new totals higher than both the expected 78-bcf build and the five-year average build of 67 bcf. Inventories last week stood at 3.499 trillion cubic feet which is 6.7% above the 5 year average and 4.1% below last year's levels.
Consumer Credit Report --
In August, total consumer credit decreased at an annual rate of 1-3/4%. Revolving credit decreased at an annual rate of 7-1/4%, and revolving credit increased at an annual rate of 1-1/4%.
FROM THE FED --
The Federal Reserve said on Thursday that it issued an order against HSBC North American Holdings Inc. The order states that the bank must improve company-wide risk management, including practices to prevent money laundering. The Bank must provide a plan for strengthening oversight of its compliance risk management within 30 days.
CLOSING NEWS --
Alcoa Beats Estimates -- After the bell, Alcoa Inc., the first Dow component to report earnings this quarter, beat estimates by reporting earnings of $.09 per share, which was ahead of estimates by $.04 per share.
What are we really worth? -- Genzyme Corp.'s board authorized personnel to explore alternatives regarding the possible sale of the Company. Although not officially declining the Sanofi offer, the data to be collected is to attain knowledge about what truly is the fair market value of Genzyme.
No pop for Pepsi -- PepsiCo weighed heavy on the market today as it kicked off earning with a 3% drop. The industry giant reported a 12% rise in fiscal profits for the third quarter, but it scaled back the top end of its 2010 earnings-growth forecast.
Shhhhhhhhh -- Adobe Systems popped 11.5% today after the New York Times reported a ''secret meeting'' between the Company and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.
Another Same Store Gainer -- American Eagle boosted its fiscal third-quarter earnings outlook today and was rewarded with a climb of 8.13%, closing at $16.23.
Revenue Miss -- Shares of Marriott dropped 5.78% today despite posting a fiscal third quarter profit as the profits fell short of Wall Street expectations. Marriott also provided a cautious forecast for the fourth quarter.
Natural gas futures plunged this afternoon reports showed stockpiles approaching record levels that were reached last year.
Micron Technology (MU) announced reported a fiscal fourth-quarter profit of $342 million, or $.32 per share, compared with a loss of $100 million, or $.12 a share, for the year-earlier period. Revenue was $2.49 billion, up from $1.3 billion. Shares of MU closed up 2.30% at $7.11.
AFTERNOON NEWS --
Stop the Bleeding -- Shares of Immucor (BLUD) need cauterized today. Shares are in the red by 18.74% after the Company issued an outlook for fiscal 2011 that was below forecasts.
Boeing Co. (BA) announced today it delivered 124 commercial airplanes in the third quarter. The total was comprised on 100 737 Next Generation jets, three 767’s and 21 777s. Shares of BA are down .24% to $68.29.
The U.S. dollar is still under immense pressure today, pushing the euro to an eight-month high and the Japanese yen to its strongest level in at least 15 years.
Fins Gain Strength from Unemployment Data -- Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) is the top gainer so far today among the financial stocks in the S&P 500 Index after Oppenheimer initiated coverage today with an outperform rating. Shares are up 1.47% to $12.46.
For sale? -- BMC Software Inc. rose to near 10 year highs today on a report the mainframe-software maker may be putting itself up for sale. Shares are up 7.07% to $42.45 currently.
AT THE OPEN --
Traders Hesitant -- Stocks are moving slowly this morning with anticipation of a couple events to come.
1) Alcoa Inc. will be the first component of the Dow Jones industrial average to report earnings when it releases results after the market closes.
2) Friday brings the government's closely watched monthly employment report
Sales News --
Macy's Inc., Abercrombie & Fitch and Limited Brands Inc. all reported better-than-expected monthly sales. Shares of M are up .86%. Shares of ANF are soaring; up 10.03% and shares of LTD are moving nicely; up 4.45%.
Dillards is also a standout this morning as shares are up 5.28% as the company’s same-store sales rose 3%.
To the Gap -- Gap Inc. reported that same store sames declined 2% against estimates. Although total sales climbed 1% to $1.34 billion, shares of GPS are down .8% in morning trading.
Drug stocks moved higher early Thursday as shares of Affymax Inc. fell 10% on the possibility of a negative legal ruling for the company. The Arca Pharmaceutical Index is up .77% while the Arca Biotechnology index is up .64% this morning.
ON A SIDE NOTE -- Former CHiPs star, Larry Wilcox, (played Officer Jonathan Baker) was sued on Thursday by the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly participating in market manipulation schemes to alter the volume and price of microcap stocks to generate sales. Wilcox was not alone; he was one of more than a dozen individuals charged with securities fraud and participating in multiple kickback schemes.
Related Stories
