Equity markets in Toronto opened slightly higher on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would modestly trim its stimulus program the day before.
The S&P/TSX composite index added 23.68 points to begin Thursday at 13,334.73, after a 150-point-plus hike Wednesday
The Canadian dollar was flat at 93.47 cents U.S.
CIBC cut the price target on Eagle Energy Trust to $9 from $9.50, driven by a negative outlook after the company cut its capex estimates. Eagle units took on 14 cents each to $8.06.
Roth resumed coverage on IMAX Corp. with a buy rating, believe the company's strong backlog and ongoing expansion of its film portfolio will continue to increase visibility, driving long-term shareholder value. IMAX shares gave back nine cents to $31.39
On the economic calendar, Statistics Canada reported this morning that the number of regular recipients of employment insurance was little changed in October at 510,500. Compared with 12 months earlier, though, the number of beneficiaries fell 8.4%.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dipped 3.19 points to 887.58
Eight of the 14 TSX subgroups began the day higher, with information technology up 1.2%, metals and mining gaining 0.8% and energy up 0.6%.
The half-dozen losers were weighed mostly by a 2% collapse in the price of gold, while materials sank 1%, and utilities, off 0.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
Investors took a breather Thursday, following a huge Fed-inspired rally Wednesday.
The Dow Jones Industrials opened Thursday down 30.47 to 16,137.50, after Wednesday’s near-300-point gain.
The S&P 500 index docked 6.88 points to 1,803.77. The NASDAQ was flat at to 4,070.06
In corporate news, Target shares were down in early trading after the retailer said that as many as 40 million people who shopped at Target stores in the three weeks after Thanksgiving may be affected by a breach of credit and debit card data.
Facebook fell slightly after the social media company filed to sell 70 million shares, mostly to index funds that will be buying the stock once it is added to the S&P 500. That includes more than 41 million shares from co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Darden Restaurants missed on earnings, as its quarterly profit plunged from a year ago. The company also announced plans to spin off the Red Lobster chain, which experienced a slump in sales.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries faded, hiking yields to 2.94% from Wednesday’s 2.89%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained 50 cents to $98.30 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dropped $35.10 to $1,199.90 U.S. an ounce.
