Equities in Toronto looked set to open higher on Friday, though gains could be pared as investors speculated about the possibility of an earlier-than-expected wind-down of U.S. Federal Reserve monetary stimulus.
The S&P/TSX composite index fell another 19.03 points to conclude the day at 13,114.39. Friday futures in Toronto nicked up 0.07%
The Canadian dollar backtracked 0.02 cents to 93.96 cents U.S. early Friday
An Air Canada Jazz turboprop plane bound for Vancouver was forced to make an emergency landing in the Pacific Coast province of British Columbia on Thursday after a fire broke out in one of its engines.
National Bank Financial cut the price target on Biox Corp to 50 cents from 75 cents following the company's fourth-quarter results that were below aggressive estimates
CIBC raised the price target on BRP Inc to $33 from $31 following the company's strong third-quarter results
National Bank Financial cut the price target on Empire Company to $82 from $83 on the company's reduced EPS projections for FY2014 and FY2015
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange fell 10.94 points Thursday to 886.09
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures pointed to a firm start to trading Friday after markets endured a three-day losing streak.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials hiked 38 points, or 0.2%, to 15,720. Futures for the S&P 500 increased 0.4%, to 1,775.50, and futures for the NASDAQ took on 14 points, or 0.4%, to 3,469
Shares of petroleum company Anadarko were down nearly 12% in premarket trading, after a court ruled that it and its Kerr-McGee unit acted improperly in its 2005 spinoff of paint materials company Tronox. The judge said that the company should pay for environmental cleanup.
Adobe shares surged in after-hours trading Thursday following quarterly sales results that came in ahead of expectations.
Qualcomm named Chief Operating Officer Steve Mollenkopf as its next CEO, succeeded Dr. Paul Jacobs, who will remain as executive chairman. Mollenkpof's name was recently tossed around as a possible successor to Steve Ballmer atMicrosoft
Markets have slumped in recent days as investors opted to take money off the table after a record-breaking run. The main U.S. indexes have shot up by 20% to 32% so far this year, supported by the Federal Reserve's $85-billion-U.S. per-month bond-buying program.
The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives approved a compromised federal budget agreement on Thursday which could raise the chance that the Fed will begin winding back its support for the economy soon.
A tapering decision might come as early as next week when the central bank holds its final policy meeting for the year.
It's a light day for economic news. The U.S. Labor Department is due to release its monthly Producer Price Index this morning.
European markets were higher in morning trading. Asian markets also diverged, with Japan's Nikkei closing up 0.4% while the Shanghai Composite ended the day lower
Oil prices fell 41 cents to $97.09 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices increased $3.50 at $1,228.40 U.S. an ounce.
