Bay Street May Open On Sluggish Note; Fed Chair's Jackson Hole Speech Eyed

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks are likely to open on a somewhat sluggish note on Friday, reacting to the GDP data and tracking the mixed trend in commodities markets. The focus will be on Fed Chair Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium for clues about the U.S. central bank's interest rate moves.

Data from Statistics Canada showed the Gross Domestic Product in Canada expanded 0.8% in the second quarter of 2026 over the previous quarter. GDP rose 0.3% in June.

GDP growth increased to 3.3% (annualized) in the second quarter of 2026 from 0.3% in the first quarter.

In earnings news, Laurentian Bank of Canada reported third-quarter earnings per share of $0.51, compared with $0.78 in the year-ago quarter. Earnings per share were expected to come in at $0.64 for the latest quarter.

The Canadian market ended slightly up on Thursday as investors analyzed the long-term effects of Canada-U.S. tariff war. Renewed concerns about inflation amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East limited market's upside.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended with a gain of 20.60 points or 0.06% at 36,834.25.

Asian stocks turned in a mixed performance on Friday as investors looked for greater clarity over whether talks between Iran and Qatar might open the Strait of Hormuz and reduce supply disruptions from the Middle East war.

Traders also awaited Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh's speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium later in the day for clues regarding potential interest rate hikes this year.

Major European markets are up in positive territory with modest gains today as investors await Fed Chari Kevin Warsh's speech at Jackson Hole for clues about the outlook for the central bank's interest rates.

In commodities trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $0.72 or 0.86% at $82.81 a barrel.

Gold futures are down $18.10 or 0.37% at $4,645.90 an ounce, while Silver futures are up $1.784 or 2.57% at $71.215 an ounce.