Stock futures pointed to a slightly higher opening for Canada's main stock index as a weaker dollar lifted prices of commodities like crude and gold.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 114.43 points to close Tuesday at 14,904.91
The Canadian dollar eked up 0.13 cents to 81.24 cents U.S. early Wednesday.
Rogers Communications Inc has agreed to pay more than $400 million to acquire struggling wireless carrier Mobilicity, two sources with knowledge of the matter said on Tuesday. The deal includes the sale of spectrum covering the Ottawa region and eastern Ontario to Wind Mobile, another small operator, for a yet-to-be-determined price, the sources said. The agreement will be brought before a court overseeing Mobilicity's creditor protection process for approval, the sources said.
TransCanada Corp and Encana Corp both said on Tuesday they were cutting jobs, joining other Canadian energy firms that have laid off staff since global oil prices slumped.
TransCanada, the backer of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project, said it cut 185 jobs following a restructuring to lower costs for customers affected by weak oil and natural gas prices.
Credit Suisse cut the price target on Denison Mines Corp to $1.35 from $1.50 to reflect sensitivity to spot and long-term uranium prices, liquidity and debt covenants.
Credit Suisse also cut the price target on Paladin Resources to $0.35 from $0.40 due to capital raising risk and price sensitivity to lower than expected spot and long-term uranium prices.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 0.86 points Tuesday to 683.20
.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures are slipping a bit and most European markets are edging lower in early trading.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials dipped 67 points, or 0.4%, to 18,000, futures for the S&P 500 fell 5.25 points, or 0.3%, to 2,111.25, and futures for the NASDAQ settled 9.75 points, or 0.2%, to 4,531.50.
Netflix shares are up by about 3.5% pre-market after the company announced it will carry out a seven-for-one stock split on July 14. The company wants to make its shares more affordable for the average investor.
Netflix has one of the S&P 500's most expensive stocks. News of the decision sent its share price over $700.00 U.S.
On the flip side, shares of food distribution company Sysco were down about 2% in extended trading as its proposed merger with US Foods suffered another delay.
Ahold and Delhaize Group have announced plans to merge, creating a supermarket giant that will serve 50 million customers a week in the U.S. and Europe. Shares in Ahold are rising by 2% in Europe, while shares in Delhaize are down 4%.
Monsanto is releasing its latest earnings report before the market opens. The agricultural supply company has seen shares dip by about 8% over the past year. Competitor Syngenta rejected a second takeover bid from Monsanto Tuesday, saying its $45-billion U.S. offer was too low.
Bed Bath & Beyond is reporting its first-quarter earnings after the close. The company's stock price is up 16% over the past year, despite experiencing increasing competition from online retailers.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis will release an updated number for U.S. Gross Domestic Product this morning. This will be the third revision for estimates of first-quarter GDP. The previous estimate from the bureau showed GDP shrank by 0.7% in the first quarter.
Major stock markets have hit new peaks over the past 24 hours, including the NASDAQ and the Nikkei in Tokyo, which is now at its highest level in 18 years.
But the momentum has faded a bit as investors still wait for Greece to finalize a debt deal with its creditors at talks in Brussels Wednesday and Thursday.
Meanwhile, Asian markets had a positive day, with Chinese stocks moving up significantly and recovering from some wild swings over the past few days.
Oil prices eked up nine cents to $61.10 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices slid 30 cents at $1,176.30 U.S. an ounce.
