Futures in Toronto pointed to a lower open for the market on Thursday after the U.S. central bank gave a less dovish outlook than many in the market had anticipated, raising concerns the massive stimulus may be scaled back earlier than previously expected.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 14.72 points to finish Wednesday at 13,455.33, with Thursday futures off 0.3%.
The Canadian dollar moved higher 0.36 cents to 95.82 cents U.S. early Thursday
Suncor Energy said on Wednesday it was moving ahead with its Fort Hills oil sands project in Northern Alberta, with first production expected as soon as the fourth quarter of 2017.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International posted a quarterly net loss that it attributed in part to restructuring and impairment charges, and Canada's biggest publicly traded drugmaker cut its full-year revenue outlook.
Barrick Gold Corp said it will suspend construction at its Pascua-Lama mine, a surprise reversal on a project that has cost billions after years of delays and cost overruns.
Bombardier Inc reported a 15% fall in net profit, and said both aircraft orders and deliveries fell in the third quarter.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that the economy rose 0.3% in August, after increasing 0.6% in July and dipping 0.5% in June. Market call was for growth of 0.1%. An increase in oil and gas extraction and widespread gains in service industries were the main contributors to the August growth.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange fell 8.81 points Wednesday to 964.17
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures declined Thursday and global markets retreated as investors digested the latest statement from the Federal Reserve.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials stepped back 27 points, or 0.2%, at 15,526. Futures for the S&P 500 dipped 1.4 points, or 0.1%, to 1,759.20, and futures for the NASDAQ dropped 11 points, or 0.3%, to 3,381.25
While the last day of October looks downbeat for stocks, the S&P 500 has rallied nearly 5% this month, and the Dow has run up more than 3%.
Investors are also expecting earnings updates from Exxon Mobil and the New York Times in the morning.
Royal Dutch Shell shares dropped in pre-market trading after the oil producer reported a steep dip in quarterly profit, partly because of a "challenging operating environment" in Nigeria.
Estee Lauder reported that makeup sales rose in the third quarter, but profit declined.
AB InBev, the brewer of Anheuser Busch, reported Wednesday that sales and profit jumped in the third quarter.
Facebook bounced higher after the social media company reported earnings after the bell Wednesday that beat expectations. The stock reaction has been wild. Shares initially jumped 15% in after-hours trading, then slumped when the company said the number of teen users who were visiting the social networking site on a daily basis had fallen.
The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it will maintain its $85-billion-U.S-per-month stimulus program, which has helped support stocks around the world by pumping cash into the financial markets.
But some investors had hoped the Fed would adopt a more dovish tone in its statement. There were also expectations that the central bank would be more explicit as to the impact of the recent government shutdown on economic growth.
Looking ahead to Thursday's economic reports, the Department of Labor releases weekly U.S. initial jobless claims.
European markets were mostly lower in morning trading and nearly all Asian markets ended in the red. Japan's Nikkei 225 slid 1.2% as the country's central bank opted to maintain its massive stimulus program.
Oil prices fell 36 cents to $96.41 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices retreated $19.70 to $1,329.60 U.S. an ounce.
