Bay Street Likely To Open On Negative Note

(RTTNews) - Lower Canadian and U.S. stock futures, weak commodity prices and European stocks point to a negative start for the Canadian market Friday morning. The focus will be on Canadian employment data.

Once again, investors will be reacting to a slew of corporate earnings announcements.

Canadian employment data for the month of October is due at 8:30 AM ET. Employment in Canada rose by 46,700 in September, the most in five months, after rising by 22,100 in August.

The unemployment rate in Canada eased to 6.5% in September from the 34-month high of 6.6% recorded in August.

Data on average hourly wages for the month of October is also due at 8:30 AM ET. In September, average hourly earnings in Canada came in at $36.54, edging up marginally from a month earlier.

In earnings news, Telus Corporation (T.TO) reported a net income of $257 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, up 87.6% compared to net income of $137 million in the corresponding quarter last year.

Onex Corporation (ONEX.TO) reported third-quarter net earnings of $127 million, compared to $256 million a year ago.

Docebo Inc (DCBO.TO) reported net income of $5.0 million, or $0.16 per share, for the third quarter of this financial year, compared to net income of $4.0 million, or $0.12 per share for the comparative period in the prior year.

Brookfield Business Partners (BBU.UN.TO) reported net income of $301 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to net loss of $44 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

The Canadian market ended on a firm note on Thursday, extending the upward move seen over the two previous sessions. The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the day up 208.48 points or 0.9% at a new record closing high of 24,845.93.

The continued strength on Bay Street came as the Federal Reserve announced its widely expected decision to lower interest rates by another quarter point.

Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday after the Bank of England and the U.S. Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point. Focus shifted to stimulus announcements from China later in the day as the meeting in the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress ends.

European stocks are notably lower on Friday as China's top legislative body - the National People's Congress (NPC) - approved the State Council's proposal to increase local government debt limit by $838 billion after a week-long session. There is some disappointment as the hotly anticipated stimulus is not as broad or immediate as initially presumed.

In commodities, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $0.84 or 1.16% at $71.52 a barrel.

Gold futures are down $9.10 or 0.33% at $2,696.70 an ounce, while Silver futures are lower by $0.260 or 0.82% at $31.595 an ounce.