The Toronto stock market was virtually unchanged at the open Thursday while traders took in the release of American job creation figures Friday and European leaders weighed the possibility of sanctions against Russia.
The S&P/TSX composite index began Thursday down 10.56 points to 14,293.61
The Canadian dollar gained 0.49 cents at 91.15 cents U.S.
On the corporate front, Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. said its quarterly adjusted net income came in at 52 cents per share, four cents below estimates.
Cash flow per share was $1.64, which was 10 cents below the estimate. The company’s quarterly dividend will rise to 22.5 cents per shares, up two cents. The shares, which trade under the symbol CNQ, opened the session up five cents to $40.75.
The National Energy Board is set to release a decision today on whether it will allow energy delivery giant Enbridge to reverse the flow and increase the capacity of a pipeline that pump soil between southern Ontario and Montreal.
Line 9 originally shuttled oil from Sarnia to Montreal, but was reversed in the late 1990s in response to market conditions to pump imported crude westward. Enbridge now wants to flow oil back eastwards to service refineries in Ontario and Quebec. Enbridge opened Thursday at $48.38, or 41 cents lower than Thursday’s trade.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported that building permits issued by Canadian municipalities increased 8.5% to $7.0 billion in January, following a 4.8% drop in December.
The improvement in January came from higher construction intentions in the residential sector, which more than offset a decline in the non-residential sector.
Also this morning, Western University’s Ivey School of Business noted that its Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) by the end of February 2014 stood at 57.2, ahead of the 56.8 figure for January, 51.1 for February 2013 and 66.5 for February 2012.
The PMI solicits managers on whether purchases last month were higher, the same, or lower than the previous month. A figure above 50 shows an increase while below 50 shows a decrease.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange grew 7.77 points to 1,037.05.
Eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower to begin the day, with health-care off 0.6%, while information technology sliding 0.4%, and real-estate fading 0.3%.
The six gainers were led by metals and mining, up 0.8%, global base metals, up 0.5%, and materials, up 0.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
Markets seemed to have regained their composure as investors worry less and less about the situation in Ukraine. That translated into earlier gains Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 64.84 points to open Thursday at 16,425.02
The S&P 500 index gained 4.63 points to 1,878.14. The NASDAQ added 4.03 points to 4,362.
Stocks are approaching the five-year anniversary of the starting point of the current bull market. And while some investors worry that stocks are overdue for a pullback, bulls say there's more room to run.
On the corporate front, Staples shares plunged after the office supplier reported a slump in last year's sales and announced that 225 stores will be closed by the middle of 2015.
Costco fell after the warehouse retailer reported sales and profits that missed forecasts.
Shares of Kroger rose after the grocery store chain issued an upbeat outlook.
Economically speaking, the U.S. government said first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week. All eyes will be on the jobs report for February tomorrow. Economists expect that 150,000 jobs were added last month and that the unemployment rate remained steady at 6.6%.
Investors are keeping a close eye on Ukraine. Political leaders in Crimea have called for a referendum this month on whether to remain part of Ukraine or join the Russian Federation. Meanwhile, U.S. and European officials unveiled new sanctions aimed at pressuring the Russians and Ukrainians deemed responsible for the crisis.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries lost ground, raising yields to 2.73% from Wednesday’s 2.70%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices nicked ahead six cents to $101.51 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices strengthened $4.50 to $1,344.80 U.S. an ounce.
