Stock futures pointed to a higher opening for Canada's main stock index Friday, as investors digested inflation data.
The S&P/TSX composite index moved forward 68.80 points to close Thursday at 14,731.08
The Canadian dollar faded 0.12 cents to 77.03 cents U.S. early Friday
Canaccord Genuity cut the price target on Torc Oil & Gas Ltd to $13 from $13.50, convinced the trough for oil company cash capex outside North America may not occur until second-half of 2016 or later.
Canaccord Genuity cuts target price on Western Energy Services Corp. to $8.00 from $9.00, says while Canadian oilfield equities responded positively to a bottoming of oil prices this spring, momentum waned shortly after the Alberta provincial election.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that inflation in Canada moved up last month. The consumer price index rose 1.0% in the 12 months to June, after increasing 0.9% in May. On a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, the Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in June, matching the increase in May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slid 3.77 points Thursday to 638.74
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock futures are mixed ahead of the open, with the NASDAQ indicating it will keep rising while the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 could post small declines.
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials drooped three points to 18,017, futures for the S&P 500 gained 1.5 or 0.1%, to 2,118.50, and futures for the NASDAQ spiked 19.25 points, or 0.4%, to 4,617.
It looks like the NASDAQ could hit new all-time highs Friday. The tech-heavy index finished Thursday with a 1% gain. The NASDAQ will have to surpass the level 5,164.36 to reach a new record.
General Electric and Honeywell are reporting ahead of the open.
Telecoms firm Ericsson reported second quarter results earlier in the morning and shares are rising by about 6% in Europe.
Shares in Google are set to surge by about 11% this morning after the tech giant reported better-than-expected results on Thursday evening.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is releasing June inflation data this morning.
The U.S. Census Bureau is releasing the latest monthly data on housing starts and building permits at the same time, to give the markets a better idea about the health of the American housing market.
Then, later on this morning, the University of Michigan is releasing its latest consumer sentiment reading for July.
Germany's parliament -- the Bundestag -- is voting Friday on whether to support formal negotiations on a new Greek bailout, which was agreed in principle by euro-zone leaders earlier this week.
European markets are slipping a bit lower in early trading, while most Asian markets ended with strong gains.
Oil prices dipped 17 cents to $50.74 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices fell $1.20 at $1,142.70 U.S. an ounce.
