Stock futures pointed to a higher opening for markets in Toronto on Wednesday as oil rose further above $50.00 U.S. a barrel after an industry report showed a large drop in U.S. crude inventories.
The S&P/TSX Composite sank 2.82 points to close Tuesday at 14,012.32. September futures gathered 0.2 points early Wednesday
The Canadian dollar gained 0.32 cents to 78.33 cents early Wednesday
Encana said on Tuesday it reached an agreement to sell its Gordondale oil and gas assets in northwestern Alberta to Birchcliff Energy Ltd for $625 million
Raymond James raised its rating on Canadian Pacific Railway to strong buy from outperform
Desjardins raised the rating on Goldcorp to buy from hold
Desjardins raised the target price on Mag Silver to $17.00 from $14.00
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported that retail sales in Canada rose 0.9% to $44.3 billion in April, after a decline of 0.8% in March. Sales were up in seven of 11 subsectors, representing 64% of total retail sales.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved lower 7.13 points Tuesday to 708.27
ON WALLSTREET
Markets are looking relatively steady following a spate of heightened volatility, with U.S. futures fairly flat before Wednesday’s open
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials crawled up 11 points, or 0.1%, to 17,748, while futures for the S&P 500 tok on one point, or 0.1%, to 2,081.50. NASDAQ futures gathered 6.75 points, or 0.2%, to 4,407.
Tesla chief Elon Musk is looking to consolidate his work and investments.
His electric car company made an offer to acquire SolarCity for nearly $3 billion U.S. in a bid to create an all-inclusive sustainable energy company. Musk owns 22% of SolarCity.
Tesla shares are set to slump following the announcement, while shares in SolarCity are shining pre-market.
In earnings numbers, Barnes & Noble and Bed Bath & Beyond are two of the firms reporting quarterly earnings after the close of trade.
Shares in Adobe look set to slip at the open following the release of the company's latest quarterly results.
European stocks are mixed in early trade. Asian markets ended the day mixed, but markets in China posted healthy gains. The Shanghai Composite was the standout performer of the day after rising by nearly 1%
Oil prices gained 34 cents to $50.19 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices dipped $1.80 to $1,270.70 U.S. an ounce.
