Stock futures pointed to a lower opening for Canada's main stock index on Thursday, as oil prices fell after official data indicated a surge in U.S. crude inventories.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index ascended 199.58 points, or 1.4%, to close Wednesday at 14,804.73
The Canadian dollar dropped 0.04 cents at 75.65 U.S. early Thursday
March futures fell 0.4% Thursday.
CIBC raised rating on Dundee Precious Metals to outperform from neutral.
RBC raised the price target on Kirkland Lake Gold to C$40 from C$38.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that housing were unchanged for a fourth consecutive month.in November, while Canadian municipalities issued $8.3 billion worth of building permits in November, up 2.6% from October. Higher construction intentions for commercial buildings drove most of the gain.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange climbed 9.85 points, or 1.7%, Wednesday to 598.11
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures were lower on Thursday, as market participants awaited further developments from the latest round of U.S.-China trade talks
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 48 points, or 0.2%, to 23,782
Futures for the S&P 500 lost 9.75 points, or 0.4%, to 2,572.74
NASDAQ futures eased 34 points, or 0.5%, to 6,568.50
FuelCell Energy and Synnex are among companies reporting earnings Thursday.
The moves in the pre-market trade come after delegations from Washington and Beijing ended three days of trade negotiations in China on Wednesday.
China’s commerce ministry said Thursday the negotiations were extensive and had helped set up a foundation for further talks. This week’s face-to-face meetings were the first to take place since U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to a 90-day truce last month.
If both sides are unable to secure a comprehensive trade agreement by March 2, Trump has said he plans to raise tariffs to 25% from 10% on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.
No major economic data reports are expected to be published on Thursday.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 capsized 1.3% Thursday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index slipped 0.2%
Oil prices lost 25 cents to $52.11 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $2.60 to $1,294.60 U.S. an ounce.
