Canadian stocks opened slightly higher Tuesday, supported by rising commodity prices, as investors watched the U.S. Federal Reserve's two-day monetary policy meeting with hopes the central bank will suggest further action to stimulate the economy.
The S&P/TSX Composite index nipped ahead 7.22 points at the start of business Tuesday to 11,765.10
The Canadian dollar shaved off 0.15 cents to 99.69 cents U.S.
Among stocks to watch this morning, Thomson Reuters said its 2012 revenue growth was on track after reporting strong software sales to tax and accounting firms, even as revenue from financial institutions was weak but making progress.
Rona Inc rejected Lowe's’ unsolicited $1.8-billion U.S. takeover offer, saying it was not in the best interests of shareholders.
A Canadian government-appointed arbitrator chose to enforce Air Canada's final offer over one proposed by the union representing its 3,000 pilots, ending a long and bitter contract dispute but angering the pilots.
Enbridge Inc. that repairs to a ruptured Wisconsin pipeline could be complete as early as on Tuesday, though regulators have not yet said when they will allow the company to restart the line.
Gryphon Gold Corp. said CFO Robert Chapman stepped down due to personal reasons. Chapman, who joined the company on April 2, resigned effective July 26.
Inmet Mining Corp. said on Monday that its second-quarter profit rose 74% from a year earlier, helped by higher copper sales volumes.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada said real gross domestic product edged up 0.1% in May, after increasing 0.3% in April.
Elsewhere, the agency’s Industrial Product Price Index slumped 0.3% in June from May, due mostly to lower prices for petroleum and coal products, while its Raw Materials Prices Index fell 4%, owing in part to a 1% slump in prices for crude oil.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange regained 3.02 points to 1,187.32. The Nasdaq Canada index faded 0.77 points to 336.49.
All but three of the 14 Toronto subgroups were positive to begin the session. Metals and mining grew 0.9%, information technology stocks were 0.5% better, and industrials were 0.3% to the good.
The three laggards were health-care and gold, each of which lost 0.3%, and energy faded 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks opened little changed Tuesday, at the start of what's expected to be another day of cautious trading ahead of meetings by U.S. and European central bankers.
The Dow Jones industrial average demurred 37.84 points, to begin the session at 13,035.17
The S&P 500 dropped 3.28 points to 1,382.02. The Nasdaq docked 0.39 points to 2,945.45.
Coach shares tumbled after the retailer reported revenue that fell short of forecasts.
Oil producer BP reported a loss of $1.4 billion U.S. for the second quarter, sending shares sharply lower. The company wrote down the value of $5 billion U.S. worth of assets, including U.S. refineries and shale gas assets, and had continued costs related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
UBS said its second-quarter profit tumbled 58% from a year earlier due to lower trading revenue and losses from the botched Facebook IPO. The Swiss bank said it incurred a loss of 349 million Swiss francs due to problems executing electronic trades when Facebook debuted on the Nasdaq in May.
UBS said it will take legal action against Nasdaq to address its "gross mishandling of the offering and its substantial failures to perform its duties." Shares of the bank were in the red.
Deutsche Bank said its second-quarter profit dropped 44% and revenue declined 6% as Europe's sovereign debt crisis weighs on investor confidence and client activity across the bank. The bank said it is cutting 1,900 jobs, mostly outside of Germany, in an effort to save €350 million, sending the stock higher.
Shares of Pfizer rose after the drug maker beat earnings and revenue expectations.
Humana shares sank after the health insurer reported a drop in second-quarter profit and lowered its full-year profit outlook.
Investors will be sifting through a handful of economic reports Tuesday, including key readings on consumer confidence, spending and income.
But they are mostly sitting back and waiting for central bank meetings in the United States and Europe this week, when they'll find out whether the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank will take new stimulus measures to boost the economy.
The Fed's two-day meeting kicks off Tuesday but culminates in an announcement Wednesday afternoon. The E.C.B. will take centre stage Thursday with its Governing Council meeting in Frankfurt.
Personal income rose 0.5% in June, while spending remained unchanged, according to a government report. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expected a 0.4% increase in income and a 0.1% rise in spending.
In a sign of a U.S. housing rebound, home prices in 20 major cities rose 2.2% in May, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller index. Economists were forecasting a 1.8% drop in prices in May, following a 1.9% decline in the previous month.
The Chicago PMI, a regional reading on manufacturing activity, is expected to have edged lower to 52.5 in July from 52.9 in June.
A consumer confidence index comes out after the market opens, with economists predicting a slight decline to 61 for July from a reading of 62 the previous month.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury gained a bit, lowering yields to 1.48% from Monday’s 1.50%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for September delivery surrendered 14 cents to $89.64 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for August delivery rose $2.40 to $1,622.10 U.S. an ounce.
