Canada's main stock index looked set to open lower, dragged down by falling commodities, after minutes of the Federal Reserve's December meeting raised concerns about the possible side effects of the bank's stimulus program.
The S&P/TSX composite index lost 70.33 points to close Thursday at 12,470.44. Futures lost 0.3%
The Canadian dollar demurred 0.005 cents to 101.26 cents U.S. Friday morning
FirstEnergy Capital initiated coverage on Platino Energy with a top pick ranking, price target of $2.50, citing company's strong financial position, significant near term exploration potential and limited downside risk.
Canaccord Genuity raised the target price on Tricon Capital Group Inc. to $7.20 from $6.50 on cash flow growth and improved valuation following acquisition of 550 single family rental homes growing its portfolio to 1,500 homes in the U.S.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported this morning that employment rose by 40,000 in December, the fourth increase in five months, all in full-time work. The unemployment rate declined 0.1 percentage points to 7.1%, the lowest in four years.
Elsewhere, the nation’s number crunchers said their Industrial Product Price Index was down 0.3% in November compared with October, due mostly to lower prices for petroleum and coal products. The Raw Materials Price Index fell 1.9%, on weaknesses for energy prices.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange shed 13.67 points Thursday to 1,226.17
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks point to a higher open, after the U.S. government reported better-than-expected jobs numbers for December.
Futures for the Dow Industrials picked up 15 points, or 0.1%, to 13,334. Futures for the S&P 500 increased 2.9 points, or 0.2%, to 1,456.50, and futures for the tech-rich Nasdaq gained 3.75 points, or 0.1%, to 2,729.25
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a gain of 155,000 jobs last month, with the unemployment rate unchanged at 7.8%. The rate was originally reported as 7.7% in November, but was revised to 7.8%.
Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecasted 150,000 jobs were created in December, up from 146,000 in November.
Two other important reports on tap for Friday morning include factory orders and ISM data.
At 10 a.m. ET, the Census Bureau will release data on November factory orders, followed by the Institute for Supply Management's monthly non-manufacturing index.
Economists surveyed by Briefing.com expect that U.S. manufacturing expanded by a half of a percentage point two months ago, while the services sector -- which makes up the vast majority of the nation's economy -- grew at a somewhat slower pace in December.
European markets were mixed in afternoon trading, as concerns about the Fed's stance on further quantitative easing prompted some investors to take profits after recent strong gains.
Meanwhile, Asian markets ended mixed. Open for the first time this year, the Shanghai Composite added 0.4%, while the Nikkei advanced 2.8%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 0.3%.
Oil prices eased 77 cents to $92.15 cents U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gave back $43 an ounce to $1,632 U.S.
