Toronto's main stock index was set to open little changed on Thursday, with a rise in commodity prices partially offset by investor jitters about the euro-zone debt crisis.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index jumped 113.02 points, or 1%, to end Wednesday at 11,564.80
Stocks to watch this morning include Royal Bank of Canada, which said profit fell 7% in the second quarter, driven by a $202-million loss the bank took on the buyout of RBC Dexia Investor Services from its partner in April.
Toronto-Dominion Bank posted a 20% rise in earnings, but signaled that the pace of earnings growth will be difficult to maintain, with loan growth slowing and low interest rates squeezing profit margins.
ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc., which makes factory automation systems and solar energy equipment, reported a quarterly profit, aided by growth at its transportation business and a narrower loss at its solar operations.
On the economic calendar, Statistics Canada reported this morning that those of us receiving regular Employment Insurance benefits was little changed in March at 549,400, or pretty much where that number has been since last September.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange regained 9.73 points to 1,256.48, while the Nasdaq Canada recovered 4.33 points to 367.04.
The Canadian dollar traded this morning up 0.05 cents to 97.61 cents U.S.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock market futures were up ahead of the opening bell on Thursday. The reading suggests that stocks may rise in early trading, even though European leaders failed to make headway on the region’s debt crisis at a key meeting.
Futures for the Dow Industrials were boosted 32 points, or 0.3%, to 12,498 with about half an hour before the opening bell, while futures for the broader S&P 500 up 4.30 points, or 0.3%, to 1,320, and futures for the tech-rich Nasdaq gathered 6.50 points, or 0.3%, to 2,547.
Commentary from institutional investors suggests that the markets consider a lot of the bad news about Europe and slowing growth in China already priced in.
Leaders from the 17-nation euro zone last night disagreed on how to resolve their issues and keep Greece within the currency club. While Germany and France have reaffirmed their commitment to work to keep Greece in the euro-zone, European Union bureaucrats have already started preparing contingency plans for it to leave.
Business output in the euro-zone contracted in May at its sharpest pace since mid-2009, according to the latest purchasing managers’ index produced by the financial services firm Markit. And an initial gauge of China’s manufacturing activity also fell in May.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.6%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index inched up 0.1%
London’s FTSE 100 index gained 1.5%. France’s CAC 40 was up 1.2%. Germany’s DAX index improved 0.8%
Oil for July delivery was up $1.03 U.S. to $90.93 a barrel
Gold for June delivery climbed 1.2% to $1,566.40 U.S. an ounce.
