The Toronto stock market headed for a lower open Thursday amid data showing a deepening contraction of the Chinese manufacturing sector and earnings from Canadian corporate heavyweights including grocer Loblaw and coffee chain Tim Hortons
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 42.26 points to finish Wednesday at 14,119.73. The index has enjoyed a winning streak of 11 straight sessions.
The Canadian dollar let go of 0.06 cents U.S. early Thursday to 90.21 cents U.S.
Traders will also focus on TransCanada after the pipeline company’s Keystone XL project suffered a major setback in a Nebraska court.
A judge on Wednesday overturned a state law that could have forced landowners to allow the pipeline through their property. The state will appeal the decision, which could force TransCanada to either draw up a new route or seek permission from all landowners.
In earnings news, Loblaw reported $183 million or 65 cents per share of adjusted net earnings in the fourth quarter, down 1.1% from a year earlier but 10 cents above the general estimate. Revenue was up 2.3% to $7.64 billion, also better than expected. Same-store sales, an important measure in the retail industry, edged up 0.6% compared with a year earlier.
Tim Hortons posted net earnings of 69 cents a share, up from 65 cents a year ago but below analyst estimates of 77 cents. Revenue was up 10.7% to $898.5 million. The company also said it is raising its quarterly dividend by about 23% and spending up to $440 million over the next year to buy back its shares.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that in December, 514,200 people received regular Employment Insurance benefits -- little changed from November. The number of beneficiaries has been relatively stable since May 2013, following a long-term downward trend that began in the summer of 2009.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange took on 3.43 points Wednesday to 1,005.88.
ON WALLSTREET
Worries over global growth could hurt markets Thursday after surveys showed a loss of momentum in Chinese and European manufacturing.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials faded 34 points, or 0.2%, to 15,982. Futures for the S&P 500 dipped 4.20, or 0.2%, to 1,821.30, and futures for the NASDAQ dropped 14 points, or 0.4%, at 3,640.50
Shares in Facebook are set to fall after the social networking company said it had bought messaging platform WhatsApp for $19 billion in cash and stock.
Still, analysts for Goldman Sachs said they believed the acquisition made strategic sense because it "will help drive increased engagement." They rate Facebook a "buy."
Tesla shares could surge by roughly 12% when trading opens after the company reported much stronger than expected profits and forecast it will sell 55% more vehicles this year than last.
Shares in BAE Systems were down by about 10% in London after the defense contractor warned that U.S. budget cuts would hurt earnings in 2014.
Safeway shares could also move up after the supermarket chain's management announced they are in talks to sell the company.
Wal-Mart, DirecTV and Actavis are set to report quarterly earnings before the opening bell. Actavis shares soared earlier this week when it said it would buy Forest Laboratories for $25 billion.
Hewlett-Packard, Groupon and Priceline.com are among the companies reporting earnings after the bell.
HSBC's preliminary reading of Chinese manufacturing activity fell to a seven-month low in February. A survey of European purchasing managers also came in weaker than analysts were expecting.
On the U.S. economy, the government is set to report the monthly consumer price index, its key measure of inflation. It will also release its weekly report on initial jobless claims.
European markets were all in the red in morning trading, with the DAX in Germany declining by roughly 1.2%.
All Asian markets except for the main index in Australia closed with losses. The Nikkei 225 in Japan took the biggest plunge, dropping by 2.2%
Oil prices slipped 39 cents to $102.92 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices fell $11.00 to $1,309.40 U.S. an ounce.
