Futures pointed to a higher opening for Canada's main stock index on Thursday, aided by gains in both crude and gold prices, while an upbeat economic outlook from the U.S. Federal Reserve boosted sentiment.
The S&P/TSX Composite surged 120.59 points to close the midweek session to 20,769.16.
Futures were up 0.6% Thursday.
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and National Bank said Wednesday they have asked staff in Canada to work remotely, joining Bank of Nova Scotia in halting plans for a return to offices amid growing concerns over the Omicron variant.
CIBC raised the rating on Cineplex to outperform from neutral.
Canaccord Genuity cuts the rating on Freshlocal Solutions to hold from buy.
CIBC cut the rating on Manulife Financial to underperform from neutral.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported wholesale sales grew 1.4% in October to the highest level on record, 11.4% higher than in February 2020.
Ontario sales and the motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and accessories sub-sector drove the increase.
A federal government advisory against traveling abroad due to the Omicron variant could lead to further confusion and cancellations ahead of the key holiday travel season, the country's second-largest carrier said on Wednesday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 15.92 points, or 1.8%, Tuesday to 877.66.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures rose sharply in early Thursday trading after the Federal Reserve signaled it would be aggressive on tapering and sees three interest rate hikes in 2022.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials jumped 210 points, or 0.6%, to 36,026.
Futures for the S&P 500 grew 27.75 points, or 0.6%, to 4,728.25.
Futures for the NASDAQ hiked 80.25 points, or 0.5%, to 16,366.50.
Shares of companies that have done well in previous rate-hiking cycles led pre-market gainers. Materials stocks FMC Corp. and Freeport-McMoRan both rose more than 3% ahead of the opening bell. Bank stocks also rose across the board, with JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Bank of America all up about 0.6%.
In transportation news, Delta Air Lines reported that it now expects to see a profit of $200 million in the fourth quarter, after previously projecting a loss. Shares rose 2.2% on the news.
Health-care stocks UnitedHealth gained 3.1%, and Amgen rose 2.6%.
Adobe and Accenture are scheduled to report quarterly earnings before the opening bell. FedEx and Rivian will report after the bell.
The Fed will begin reducing the pace of its asset purchases in January and buy just $60 billion of bonds each month going forward, compared to $90 billion in the month of December. That decision follows recent inflation data showing a 6.8% surge in November, which is higher than expected and the fastest rate since 1982.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 sprang up 2.1% Thursday, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong eked up 0.2%.
Oil prices gained 40 cents to $71.27 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices jumped $25.90 to $1,790.40 U.S. an ounce.
