Futures for stocks in Canada’s biggest market were up slightly on Thursday, after a report that China had invited top U.S. officials for a new round of face-to-face trade talks boosted sentiment.
The TSX Composite Index faded 5.67 points to finish Wednesday at 17,005.82
The Canadian dollar faded 0.03 cents to 75.14 cents U.S. early Thursday
December futures eked up 0.04% early Thursday.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Wednesday that the end of a government-imposed curtailment on oil production could come earlier than its December 2020 sunset date.
Teck Resources has hired Barclays to sell all of its 80% stake in its Zafranal copper asset in Peru, as the diversified miner accelerates efforts to exit advanced projects and focus on its massive Chilean expansion.
CIBC raised the target price on Bank of Nova Scotia to $81.00 from $77.00
CIBC raised the target price on Canadian Western Bank to $38.00 from $33.00
National Bank of Canada raised the target price on Metro Inc. to $57.00 from $56.00
On the macroeconomic front, Statistics Canada says the number of Canadian drawing regular employment insurance benefits dropped in September to 445,600, down 5,600, or 1.2%, from August.
The agency says there were notable decreases in five provinces, particularly in Alberta and B.C. At the same time, there were more EI beneficiaries in Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange recouped 1.67 points Wednesday to 524.14
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock index futures were little changed on Thursday morning.
Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials slumped nine points early Thursday to 27,791.
Futures for the S&P 500 slipped 1.25 points at 3,107.75.
The NASDAQ Composite dropped 10 points, or 0.1%, to 8,281.75.
In corporate news, Macy’s, Berry Global, and BJ’s Wholesale will report earnings before the opening bell. Gap, Intuit, and Splunk are among some of the companies poised to release their latest quarterly results after market close.
On the data front, the latest weekly jobless claims and Philadelphia Fed manufacturing figures for November will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. Existing home sales for October will follow slightly later in the session.
Market focus is largely attuned to global trade developments after a report from The Wall Street Journal suggested China had invited American negotiators to Beijing for a fresh round of trade talks.
During a phone call thought to have been made late last week, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He reportedly invited U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to Beijing to sit down for further negotiations.
Overseas, in Japan, the Nikkei 225 ducked 0.5% Thursday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 1.6%.
Oil prices gained 25 cents to $57.26 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices fell three dollars to $1,471.20 U.S. an ounce.
