Futures for Canada’s main stock index fell on Thursday, as oil prices dropped on a record buildup in U.S. crude inventories and a dour economic outlook from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed Wednesday down 132.41 points to 15,701.33.
The Canadian dollar sank 46 cents early Thursday to 74.10 U.S.
June futures toppled 1.5% Thursday.
Bombardier is to cut around 400 jobs in its Northern Ireland operations, it said on Thursday, part of plans announced last week to cut 2,500 jobs or about 11% of the workforce in its global aviation unit.
TD Securities raised the target price on North West Company to $32.00 from $30.00
BMO cuts target price on Transcontinental Inc. to $16.50 from $17.50
Scotiabank raised the target price on Tricon Capital Group to $11.00 from $10.25.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 2.59 points Wednesday to 567.38.
ON WALLSTREET
Stock futures fell sharply in early trading Thursday as coronavirus cases increased in some states that are reopening up from lockdowns. Shares that have surged recently on hopes for a smooth reopening of the economy dropped in pre-market trading.
Futures for Dow Jones Industrials stumbled 699 points, or 2.6%, early Thursday, to 26,262.
Futures for the S&P 500 sank 70.5 points, or 2.2%, to 3,115.50.
Futures for the NASDAQ Composite Index slipped 161 points, or 1.6%, to 9,926.25.
Shares of United Airlines, Delta, American and Southwest all dropped more than 10% in pre-market trading. Carnival Corp. and Norwegian Cruise Line shares fell more than 11%. Gap and Kohl’s shares also fell more than 8% each.
Concerns about a second wave of coronavirus cases have risen as U.S. states push deeper into reopening. Texas has reported three consecutive days of record-breaking Covid-19 hospitalizations. Nine California counties are reporting a spike in new coronavirus cases or hospitalizations of confirmed cases, AP reported Wednesday.
Overall coroanvirus cases in the U.S. topped two million, according to the latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.
On Wednesday, investors assessed the Federal Reserve’s updates on the economy and monetary policy. The policymakers voted unanimously to keep interest rates unchanged and indicated no rate increases through 2022.
Investors are awaiting the new jobless claim data for the week ending June 6, set for Thursday morning. Economists expected filings for unemployment insurance claims to total 1.595 million last week, which is down from 1.775 million in the week before.
Overseas, in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 collapsed 2.8%, Thursday, while in Hong Kong, the Hang Sang index dropped 2.3%.
Oil prices floundered $1.76 at $37.84 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices regained $12.90 to $1,733.60.