Lower Futures Pointing To Weak Start On Bay Street; Canadian GDP, US PCE Data In Focus

(RTTNews) - Lower Canadian and U.S. futures ahead of Canadian GDP data and U.S. personal consumption expenditure report, point to a weak start on Bay Street Friday morning.

Also, investors may look to take some profits following strong gains earlier in the week.

Canada's GDP data for the third quarter is due out at 8:30 AM ET. The Canadian economy registered a 0.5% growth in the first three months of 2025, from a quarter earlier. On an annualized basis, the Canadian GDP expanded by 2.2% in the first quarter, firmly above expectations of 1.7%.

US PCE reading for July, Chicago PMI reading, and Michigan Consumer Sentiment report are also due this morning.

In earnings news, Laurentian Bank (LB.TO) reported net income of $37.5 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.73 for the third quarter of 2025, compared with net income of $34.1 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.67 for the third quarter of 2024.

BRP Inc. (DOO.TO) reported net income of $57.1 million for the second quarter of 2025, up 36% compared to the $42.0 million it had posted in the year-ago quarter.

The Canadian market closed flat on Thursday despite opening at a record high, as investors resorted to profit taking.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index opened at a fresh record intraday high of 28,530.19, but ended the day's session at 28,434.80, up by just 1.80 points, or 0.01%.

Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday as caution prevailed ahead of a key U.S. inflation report due later in the day that might show core personal consumption expenditures prices rose 2.9% in July, the fastest pace in five months.

Recent strong U.S. economic data soothed recession jitters but also fueled concerns about persistent inflation amid geopolitical factors like the Russian-Ukraine conflict.

The major European markets are exhibiting weakness as investors largely stay cautious, choosing to wait for crucial U.S. PCE reading for clues about Fed's possible moves with regard to interest rates.

In commodities trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $0.53 or 0.81% at $64.07 a barrel.

Gold futures are down $4.20 or 0.12% at $3,470.10 an ounce, while Silver futures are lower by $0.178 or 0.45% at $39.525 an ounce.