(CORRECTION: MARKET PREVIEW REFERRED TO MOTOR VEHICLE SALES DUE FOR RELEASE THURSDAY. THE FIGURES ARE IN FACT DUE FRIDAY).
Canada's main stock index hit a record high on Thursday, helped by energy stocks, while investors parsed U.S. economic data and awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's comments due later in the day.
The TSX climbed 73.69 points to open Thursday at 25,062.71, a new intraday high.
The Canadian dollar lost 0.15 cents to 71.32 cents U.S.
In corporate news, distributor of architectural building products Adentra surpassed third-quarter sales estimates and increased its quarterly dividend to $0.15 per share from $0.14. Adentra gained 91 cents in the first hour, or 2.4%, to $39.71.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slipped 2.72 points to 591.
All but three of the 12 subgroups were gainers. Energy gained 2.2%, materials recovered 0.8%, and utilities picked up 0.7%.
The three gainers were information technology, down 1.7%, health-care, fading 0.9%, and real-estate, off 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks were little changed Thursday, as investors tried to recapture the postelection momentum that lifted the major averages to record highs.
The Dow Jones Industrials folded 73.83 points to 43,884.36.
The S&P 500 dived 14.35 points to 5,971.14.
The NASDAQ Composite slid 62.04 points to 19,168.68.
Disney shares popped 9% after the media giant reported better-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter results, boosting the Dow. The company got a boost from strong streaming growth driving its entertainment business.
Those moves come after the October producer price index released Thursday rose 0.2%, matching forecasts from economists polled by Dow Jones.
PPI excluding food and energy ran faster than forecast. The October consumer price index came in as expected on Wednesday, but nevertheless signaled the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation is yet to be won. Core CPI rose by 0.3% for a third straight month, with the 12-month rate at 3.3%.
Investors are deliberating whether a postelection rally following Donald Trump’s decisive victory last week still has room to run after powering the major averages to new milestones. The Dow closed above 44,000 for the first time on Monday, and both the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite notched new highs.
Investors will also closely monitor scheduled remarks from Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Thursday in Dallas, while the October retail sales report is due out Friday.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained a slight bit of ground, pushing yields down to 4.42% from Wednesday’s 4.45%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices regained 72 cents to $69.15 U.S. a barrel.
Prices for gold dipped $14.80 an ounce to $2,571.70 U.S.
