The Toronto stock market headed for a lower open Wednesday as weak corporate performances reminded traders of the fragile state of the economic recovery.
The S&P/TSX Composite index prospered 40.89 points to end Tuesday at 12,116.92.
The Canadian dollar faded 0.57 cents Wednesday morning to 100.55 cents U.S.
Resource stocks will likely lead the TSX lower after mining giant BHP Billiton reported that its annual profit plunged 34.8% from a year ago to $15.4 billion U.S. as a slowdown in global economic growth led to weaker prices for its key commodities.
Revenue for the year was up 0.7% to $72.2 billion U.S.
In corporate news, a letter signed by dozens of independent merchants who operate 164 Rona stores across Canada have written to the head of Lowe’s Companies, saying they are opposed to a takeover of Quebec-based Rona Inc.. The letter, made public Wednesday, says the independents prefer Rona’s approach of combining a network of independents with more than 200 corporate stores.
CAE says it has won a series of military contracts valued at more than $55 million. They include a contract from Airbus Military to develop a full-flight simulator for the Royal Air Force of Oman and a contract to provide maintenance and support services for the Indian Air Force’s Hawk training devices.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada told us this morning that retail sales eased 0.4% in June, more than offsetting a gain in May. Lower sales were reported in seven of 11 sub-sectors, representing 64% of retail trade.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange finished in the green 9.98 points to 1,239.32. The Nasdaq Canada fell 1.22 points to 348.50.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks are set to open slightly lower Wednesday, after hitting four-year highs a day earlier.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials dropped 31 points, or 0.2%, to 13,168, about 30 minutes before the opening bell.
Futures for the S&P 500 shed 2.1 points, or 0.2%, to 1,410.40, and for the Nasdaq, futures fell 3.75 points, or 0.1%, to 2,770.25.
Investors continue to keep an eye on Greece as Prime Minister Antonis Samaras meets with euro-zone officials throughout the week. He is expected to push for a two-year extension of the country's bailout program, which would give the government more time to implement difficult reforms and help get the nation's economy back on track.
Meanwhile in the U.S., investors will spend Wednesday parsing the minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting, while also digesting a report on existing home sales and the latest round of corporate earnings.
The Fed will release the minutes of its July meeting at 2 p.m. ET.
On matters economic, the National Association of Realtors will release data on existing home sales for the month of July at 10 a.m. ET. Sales are expected to come in at an annual rate of 4.55 million, up from June's 4.37 million, according to a survey of analysts by Briefing.com.
European stocks were all lower in afternoon trading. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.2%, the DAX in Germany slipped 0.9% and France's CAC 40 shed 0.9%.
Asian markets closed in the red. The Shanghai Composite lost 0.5%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 1.1%, and Japan's Nikkei edged lower 0.3%.
Oil for September delivery fell 37 cents to $96.50 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for December delivery added $1.80 cents to $1,638.40 U.S. an ounce.
