Markets in Toronto dwindled in early trade on Friday – the last session of October -- as financial and energy stocks slipped and Valeant Pharmaceuticals weighed after cutting ties with a pharmacy business after criticism of their close relationship.
The S&P/TSX composite index descended 88.06 points to open Friday at 13,703.82
The Canadian dollar eased off 0.01 cents at 75.94 cents U.S.
Canadian Oil Sands, the biggest shareholder in the Syncrude project has not received a rival offer to a hostile takeover bid by Suncor Energy, but it is "getting interest" as it explores alternatives.
The company on Thursday reported a loss of $174 million or 36 cents per share. That was a much wider loss than the average analyst expectation of a loss of 22 cents per share.
Oil Sands began the day’s trading up five cents to $9.93.
Hydro One Ltd, Ontario electric utility’s initial public offering was priced at $20.50 per share on Thursday, raising $1.66 billion and marking one of the biggest IPOs in Canadian history.
The pricing suggested demand for a roughly 15% stake in the province's largest electric utility was high. The shares, which will list on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "H", are expected to begin trading on Nov. 5.
Quebec's $1-billion bailout for Bombardier is meant to protect thousands of jobs in one of the province's top industries, but risks worsening the finances of Canada's most indebted province if it fails.
The deal would give Quebec's Liberal-run government a 49.5% stake in Bombardier's troubled CSeries jet program, according to the announcement on Thursday, easing shareholder fears about the company's future but triggering an outcry from taxpayer advocates and opposition politicians.
Bombardier shares added four cents, or 3%, to $1.37.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International said it is terminating all ties with Philidor due to allegations relating to the specialty pharmacy distributor's business practices. Valeant said it intends develop a plan to ensure patients' access to drugs is minimally disrupted.
Valeant shares lost $11.01, or 7.4%, to $137.22.
Cameco Corp reports Q3 earnings, expecting 30 cents per share. Cameco shares dropped 23 cents, or 1.2%, to $18.49.
Domtar Corp. expects Q3 earnings of 54 cents per share. Domtar shares rocketed $1.40, or 2.6%, to $54.36.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported that Gross Domestic Product edged up 0.1% in August, following increases of 0.4% in June and 0.3% in July. The agency mainly attributes growth in August to gains in manufacturing, mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction and retail trade.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 1.03 points to 540.68
All but three of the 13 TSX subgroups were negative to start the day’s trading, as health-care dipped 1.2%, financials sank 0.7%, and materials fell 0.5%.
The three gainers were metals and mining, up 1%, while gold and industrials squeezed up 0.1% each.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded in a range Friday, on pace to close out their best month in four years, amid more earnings and economic reports.
The Dow Jones industrial average docked 3.07 points to 17,752.73, with Pfizer leading decliners and Microsoft the greatest advancer.
The S&P 500 dropped 3.4 points to 2,086.81, with consumer staples leading six sectors lower and materials the greatest advancer.
The NASDAQ index eked up 0.61 points to 5,074.88,
On the earnings front, AbbVie, Colgate-Palmolive and Exxon Mobil all reported before the bell.
Exxon Mobil reported quarterly results that beat on both the top and bottom line, but profit declined 47% as low oil prices weighed.
Chevron announced plans to cut its workforce by 6,000 to 7,000, while posting earnings that topped expectations.
The major averages are up nearly 9% or more for October, tracking for their best month since October 2011.
In economic news, personal income rose 0.1% in September, while personal consumption rose 0.1%.
The employment cost index rose 0.6% in the third quarter.
The Fed's preferred inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, slipped 0.1% in September. The decline marked the first drop since January.
The final read for October consumer sentiment came in at 90.0.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries were higher, lowering yields to 2.15% from Thursday’s 2.18%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices retreated 25 cents a barrel to $45.81 U.S.
Gold prices slid $2.53 to $1,143.44 U.S. an ounce.
