Luke KawaThe Globe and Mail
The Before the Bell report is updated throughout the premarket to reflect the latest news developments and market moves. Check back later for updates.
U.S. equity futures are slightly to the downside ahead of the open on another day in which attention is squarely focused on affairs in Europe.
The minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest meeting gave U.S. markets a kick on Wednesday, but this sugar high appears to have worn off. Comments from monetary policymakers suggested a number of them were inclined to keep rates lower for longer, and that there is little consensus on the outlook for inflation.
Meanwhile, Greece has requested a six-month extension to its financial assistance agreement. While for all intents and purposes this amounts to the same thing as an extension of its bailout deal, Greek leaders likely feel that this move allows them to save face to renegotiate a new agreement while preserving the nation's solvency. On Wednesday, the European Central Bank also slightly increased the emergency funds it was willing to provide to the nation.
The Eurogroup will meet on Friday to discuss Greece's request. Reports suggest that Germany is poised to reject this proposal. The rapid flurry of news has left European equities and bonds in flux this morning.
Japan's Nikkei hit a 15-year high amid news that the nation's exports soared in January, buoyed by the weaker yen, while imports fell by more than anticipated.
Crude oil suffered a steep decline after equity markets closed on Wednesday, which bodes ill for the S&P/TSX Composite index. The active futures contract for West Texas Intermediate is trading near $50 per barrel (U.S.) this morning ahead of the U.S. crude inventories report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Prices came under pressure Wednesday after data from the American Petroleum Institute showed another big weekly build in U.S. crude inventories.
Details on upcoming earnings, market results and a preview of the day's key economic releases can be found below.
MARKETS:
Futures:
S&P 500 -0.20 per cent; Dow -0.18; Nasdaq unch
Equities:
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Closed for holiday
Shanghai composite index Closed for holiday
Japan's Nikkei +0.36 per cent
London's FTSE 100 -0.12 per cent
Germany's DAX -0.03 per cent
France's CAC 40 +0.33 per cent
Stoxx 600 +0.79 per cent
Commodities:
WTI crude oil (Nymex Apr) -3.93 per cent at $50.09 (U.S.) a barrel
Natural gas (Nymex Apr) +1.77 per cent at $2.881
Gold (Comex Apr) +1.76 per cent at $1,221.30 (U.S.) an ounce
Copper (Comex Mar) -0.61 per cent at $2.5985 (U.S.) a pound
Currencies:
Canadian dollar at 80.03 (U.S.), down 0.0042
U.S. dollar index up 0.17 at 94.425
Bonds:
U.S. 10-year Treasury yield 2.089 per cent, up 0.021
ECONOMIC INDICATORS:
Last week's initial jobless claims in the U.S. came in at 283,000, slightly better than the consensus estimate fo 290,000.
(10 a.m. ET) The February Philadelphia Fed Index will be released, the consensus is 9.0, up from 6.3 last month.
(10 a.m. ET) The U.S. reports its January leading indicator, and the consensus is an increase of 0.3 per cent.
(12:15 p.m. ET) Bank of Canada Deputy Governor Agathe Côté speaks on "Inflation Expectations and Monetary Policy" to the Association Québécois des Technologies in Mont Tremblant, Que.
STOCKS TO WATCH:
Barrick Gold Corp. took a $2.8-billion impairment change on its troubled mines in the fourth quarter, the primary cause of its $2.85-billion loss in the fourth quarter. The world's largest gold miner pledged to reduct debt by $3-billion this year.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.61 (U.S.), seven cents higher than analysts had anticipated. The company said its hourly employees will see their wages boosted to $9 per hour in April, and bumped its quarterly dividend up by one cent to $0.49. However, management's full-year guidance fell far short of the Street's expectations, and shares are moving lower in the pre-market.
Imax Corp. reported adjusted fourth-quarter earnings per share of 34 (U.S.) cents on revenue of $102.5-million. The results beat Street estimates, which were looking for 30 cents and $95.28-million, respectively.
EOG Resources Inc., a dominant U.S. shale oil producer, said that production would remain flat this year relative to 2014 as it plans to cut spending substantially and drill half as many wells. The firm's fourth-quarter results released on Wednesday after the close also came in shy of analysts' estimates.
Noble Energy Inc. announced that it would be reducing capital spending by 40 per cent to $2.9-billion (U.S.) this year.
Goldcorp Inc. posted adjusted earnings per share of $0.07 (U.S.), missing the consensus estimate of $0.12.
Other earnings expected: Alamos Gold, AuRico Gold, Boardwalk REIT, Centerra Gold, Chorus Aviation, Finning International, Fortis, Inter Pipeline, Newalta, New Gold, TransAlta, West Fraser, Arista Networks Inc., Bill Barrett Corp., Bloomin' Brands Inc., BuildABear Workshop Inc., Calgon Carbon Corp., Clear Channel Outdoor, Consolidated Edison Inc., Crocs Inc., Dana Holdings, Del Frisco's Restaurant Group Inc., Denbury Resources Inc., Directv, Discovery Communications, Eldorado Gold Corp., Enbridge Energy Partners L.P., Fiesta Restaurant Group Inc., Frontier Communications Corp., Goldcorp Inc., Host Hotels & Resorts Inc., Hudbay Minerals Inc., inContact Inc., Intuit Inc., Newmont Mining Corp., Noble Energy Inc., Noodles & Co., Nordstrom Inc., Novatel Wireless Inc., Patterson Companies Inc., Penn West Petroleum Ltd., Priceline Group Inc., Quanta Services Inc., Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co., Rocket Fuel Inc., Silver Standard Resources Inc., Six Flags Entertainment Corp., State Auto Fincl Corp., StealthGas Inc., Superior Energy Servoces Inc., T-Mobile US Inc., Teekay Corp., Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc., Toro Co., Ultra Petroleum Corp., Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
ANALYST ACTIONS:
Tourmaline Oil Corp. was upgraded to "buy" from hold" by analysts at Desjardins Securities, which hiked their price target to $49 (Canadian) from $44.
EOG Resources Inc. was downgraded to "neutral" from "buy" by Citigroup.
Valero Energy Corp. was upgraded to "buy" from "hold" over at Deutsche Bank.