A week most investors would wish to forget appears to be ending with a whimper rather than a bang.
The S&P/TSX composite index fell 122.39 points to open Friday at 14,338.21, after a drop Thursday of more than 200 points.
The Canadian dollar shaved off 0.02 cents at 89.39 cents U.S.
Finance Minister Joe Oliver said on Thursday the Harper government stands ready to act to cool the housing market if necessary but does not see a housing bubble or the need for any dramatic moves.
With marijuana still illegal on a federal level in the United States, American investors in Canadian medical marijuana can be seen as violating the Controlled Substances Act, according to some U.S experts. And the use of the banking system to transfer the proceeds of such investments could be seen as money laundering.
Wood & Co raised rating on Bankers Petroleum to buy from hold. Bankers Petroleum shares docked 16 cents, or 3.5%, to $4.48.
Canaccord Genuity cut the rating on Manitok Energy to speculative buy from buy. Manitok shares were static soon after Friday’s opening at $2.02.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada said the workforce increased by 74,000 in September, nearly all in full-time work, pushing the unemployment rate down 0.2 percentage points to 6.8%, the lowest since December 2008.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 5.73 points to 831.09.
All but one of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower in the first hour of trading, with industrials swooning 1.9%, energy stocks 1.3% worse than yesterday, and global base metals sinking 1.1%.
Only real-estate issues were positive, eking up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks edged slightly higher on Friday but the main benchmarks were poised to record weekly losses after a roller-coaster week of up-and-down trading.
The Dow Jones Industrials recovered 12.85 points to 16,672.10, after yesterday’s tumble of more than 330 points.
The S&P 500 shed 4.87 points to 1,923.34. The NASDAQ index dipped 39.91 points to 4,338.43.
Tesla Motors Inc. late Thursday unveiled its latest Model S car. But shares slid 5.9%.
Symantec Corp. shares were off 1.1%. The security software maker late Thursday said it plans to split in two publicly traded companies.
Juniper Networks Inc. fell 4.5% after late Thursday’s warning that fiscal third-quarter revenue and adjusted earnings are likely to come in below its previous estimates.
Exact Sciences Corp. shares rallied 36% as the company’s Cologuard test to detect colorectal cancer will be covered by Medicare.
Alpha Pro Tech Ltd. is up 32% and Lakeland Industries Inc. is up 16% following gains from Thursday amid rising Ebola outbreak concerns. Alpha Pro Tech’s infection control unit makes face masks and eye shields, and Lakeland makes protective clothing for health care and first responders.
The prices paid for imported goods fell 0.5% in September and declined for the third straight month, another sign that U.S. inflationary pressures remain muted. The main reason: falling worldwide oil prices.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained ground, lowering yields to 2.32% from Thursday’s 2.33%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices fell 43 cents to $85.34 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices demurred $3.60 to $1,221.70 U.S. an ounce.
