November 4th
Daily Market Commentary
ECONOMIC NEWS
- International Merchandise Trade in Canada was reported at $0.71B, above estimates of -$0.10B.
- Imports and Exports in Canada were reported at $44.08B and $44.79B, respectively. Imports were below estimates, while exports were above.
- The trade balance in the U.S. was reported at -$43.03B, below estimates of -$40B.
- The RedBook Index was reportedly up 0.2% and 3.9% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms.
- The Producer Price Index in the Eurozone was reportedly up 0.2% and down 1.4% in month-over-month and year-over-year terms, respectively. Both were above estimates.
- The PMI Construction for Great Britain in October was reported at 61.4, below estimates of 63.5.
Commodities:
- West Texas Intermediate dropped to the lowest intraday level in three years as Saudi Arabia cut prices for crude exports to U.S. customers amid speculation that stockpiles increased. Brent extended losses in London.
- Gold traded near a four-year low as investors weighed speculation that the Federal Reserve is preparing to raise interest rates against signs bullion is oversold. Silver headed for the longest run of losses this year.
Canada:
- Bank of Nova Scotia said it will take a charge of C$451 million ($396 million) as it cuts about 1,500 jobs, writes down its investment in Venezuela and loans sour in the Caribbean.
- Talisman Energy is reporting net income of US$425-million for the third quarter, or 41 cents per share. That compares with a loss of $54-million, or five cents per share, in the same quarter of 2013.
- Tekmira Pharmaceutical Corp. is leading Ebola-related drug stocks as investors wager the Canadian company’s therapy is among the most promising to combat the strain of the outbreak that’s sweeping West Africa.
- TransCanada Corp. said costs for its proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline have increased from $5.4 billion to $8 billion. The company also said third-quarter profit fell as Alberta electricity prices declined.
United States:
- U.S. stock-index futures dropped, with equity benchmarks near records, as investors weighed prospects for economic growth and corporate earnings to help gauge the pace of the recovery.
- JPMorgan Chase & Co. said it faces a U.S. criminal probe into foreign-exchange dealings and boosted its maximum estimate for “reasonably possible” losses on legal cases to the highest in more than a year.
- Sprint Corp. plans to cut about 2,000 jobs after the wireless carrier lost subscribers for an 11th straight quarter.
International:
- European stocks declined for a second day, as officials cut growth forecasts for the euro region, outweighing better-than-expected earnings from companies including Securitas AB and Royal DSM NV.
- KKR & Co. plans to offer investors in its new European pool for the first time a bigger share of the profits after the firm’s similar funds underperformed peers, said two people with knowledge of the matter.
- Asian stocks rose, with the Topix index climbing to a six-year high, after the yen weakened as investors weighed additional stimulus by Japan’s central bank.
- China plans a $16.3 billion fund to finance construction of infrastructure linking its markets to three continents as President Xi Jinping pushes forward with his plans to revive the centuries-old Silk Road trading route.
- SoftBank Corp., the Japanese wireless carrier led by billionaire Masayoshi Son, cut its full-year profit forecast 10 percent on widening losses at its Sprint Corp. unit in the U.S.
- Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s second-largest carmaker, reported quarterly profit that exceeded estimates as a weaker yen boosted earnings from the U.S. and outweighed a slump in Japan.
*All information is taken from Bloomberg, unless otherwise noted.