KB: Futures suggest higher market open despite pending U.S. economic reports
TORONTO - North American markets appear headed for a higher open Thursday ahead of readings on the U.S. economic output and on weekly unemployment claims.
Investors are eager for more insights into the state of the economy after better-than-expected figures on measures like home construction and retail sales helped fuel a rally in stocks that has lasted more than two weeks.
The economic reports arriving Thursday could provide a mixed view.
The U.S. government is expected to report that the total value of goods and services produced within the United States contracted at an annualized rate of 6.5 per cent for the October-December quarter.
Traders are bracing for a bad number but can take some comfort in knowing the data is for the already written-off fourth quarter.
The government's unemployment report is expected to show new claims rose slightly last week while continuing claims reached a new record.
During Wednesday's trade, Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index stepped back from a 132-point surge to close down 51.95 points to 8,797.44.
New York's Dow Jones industrial average rose 89.6 points to 7,749.81.
Ahead of Thursday's reports, Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 50, or 0.7 per cent, to 7,730. Standard & Poor's 500 index futures rose 6.20, or 0.8 per cent, to 814.40, while Nasdaq 100 index futures rose 11.50, or 0.9 per cent, to 1,245.00.
The Canadian dollar opened at 81.40 cents US, unchanged from Wednesday's close.
Oil prices rose 89 cents to US$53.66 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1.8 per cent. In afternoon trading, Britain's FTSE 100 rose 0.2 per cent, Germany's DAX index rose 0.7 per cent, and France's CAC-40 slipped 0.1 per cent.
