Equities in Canada’s biggest market had their sights pointed downward, as oil prices slipped to three-month lows a day after data showed a surprise rise in U.S. crude and gasoline inventories
The S&P/TSX Composite finished just south of breakeven 3.46 points Wednesday to 14,546.54
The Canadian dollar gained 0.21 cents to 76.04 cents U.S. early Thursday
Barrick Gold reported a rise in second-quarter profit on Wednesday and said it plans to sell its 50% stake in a Western Australia mine to carve more from its debt.
Cenovus Energy posted a net loss of $267 million, or 32 Canadian cents per share, in the quarter, compared with a profit of $126 million, or 15 cents per share, a year earlier.
Goldcorp on Wednesday reported a net loss of $78 million, or nine cents a share, in the three months to end-June. That compared with net earnings of $392 million, or 47 cents per share, a year earlier. Analysts, on average, had expected earnings of three cents a share.
Kinross Gold said on Wednesday it expected to suspend operations at a Chilean gold mine in the fourth quarter as it posted a second-quarter loss that exceeded forecasts. Kinross reported an adjusted net loss of $9.8 million, or one cent per share, in the quarter ended June 30. That was smaller than the loss of $13.6 million, or one cent per share, in the year-ago period but below analysts' expectations for one cent a share.
Maple Leaf Foods reported a quarterly profit, compared with a year-earlier loss, helped by higher earnings in its meat products business. The company reported net earnings of $31.4 million, or 23 cents per share, in the second quarter ended June 30, compared with a loss of $7.5 million, or five cents, a year earlier.
MEG Energy reported a net loss of $146 million, or 65 cents per share, for the three months ended June 30, compared with a profit of $63 million, or 28 cents per share, a year earlier.
Suncor Energy reported a second-quarter operating loss of $565 million, or 36 cents per share. That was below the average analyst estimate of an operating loss of 26 cents per share.
Potash Corp of Saskatchewan found its net earnings fell to $121 million, or 14 cents per share, in the second quarter ended June 30 from $417 million, or 50 cents per share, a year earlier.
Teck Resources reported net profit attributable to shareholders fell by more than three-quarters to $15 million, or three cents per share, in the quarter ended June 30. Excluding items, Teck earned one cent per share. Analysts had expected a loss of one cent per share. Revenue fell nearly 13% to $1.74 billion.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that average weekly were $956 in May, up 0.2% from the previous month. Compared with 12 months earlier, average weekly earnings increased 0.9%.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 10.8 points Wednesday to 781.71
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. futures were waffling early Thursday
Ahead of the opening bell, futures for the Dow Jones Industrials chucked 15 points, or 0.1%, to 18,375, while futures for the S&P 500 dropped 1.5 points, or 0.1%, at 2,159. NASDAQ futures docked six points, or 0.1%, to 4,701.75.
Shares in Facebook are set to surge to fresh record highs this morning after the company posted a better-than-expected earnings report Wednesday evening.
The social network shattered Wall Street's lofty estimates for sales, profits, user growth and pretty much everything else you can think of with its second quarter report
Whole Foods shares are heading in the other direction -- sinking in extended trading after the grocer issued a disappointing earnings report.
Ford, Credit Suisse, Diageo, MasterCard, ConocoPhillips, Royal Dutch Shell, New York Times, Volkswagen, Harley-Davidson, and Hershey are posting earnings updates ahead of the open.
After the close, investors will hear from Amazon, Google's parent company Alphabet, CBS, Expedia and Live Nation.
A top Chinese insurance company has amassed a 13.5% stake in the auction house Sotheby's, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Taikang Life Insurance suggested it may seek a seat on the Sotheby's board of directors.
European markets are mixed in early trading while Asian markets closed the day with mixed results.
Oil prices gained 14 cents to $42.06 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained $16.30 at $1,343 U.S. an ounce.
