TSX Set to Eke Higher on Rising Metal Prices

The TSX Composite was catapulted 333.29 points, or 1.6%, to greet the closing bell Thursday at 21,222.69.

March futures inched up 0.1% Friday.

The Canadian dollar sagged 0.05 cents to 74.19 cents U.S.

In corporate news, Air Canada reported a smaller adjusted loss on Friday, as it benefited from resilient demand for international travel.

Meanwhile, Fairfax Financial Holdings beat estimates for fourth-quarter profit, helped by higher gains from investments, the insurer reported on Thursday after the bell.

On the economic front, Statistics Canada says Canadian investors acquired an unprecedented $29.4 billion of foreign securities in December, led by a record investment in foreign shares. Meanwhile, foreign investment in Canadian securities totalled $10.4 billion, mainly in debt instruments.

As well, wholesale sales grew 0.3% to $82.9 billion in December.

ON BAYSTREET

The TSX Venture Exchange gained 4.26 points Thursday to 552.49.

ON WALLSTREET

Stock futures were mixed on Friday morning as investors attempt to carry forward the broader market’s strong momentum and awaited fresh U.S. inflation figures.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials faded 32 points, or 0.1%, to 38,826.

Futures for the S&P 500 squeezed higher 7.25 points, or 0.1%, at 5,053.75.

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Futures for the NASDAQ hiked 87.25 points, or 0.5%, to 18,000.50.

The producer price index for January is slated for release Friday. Economists polled by Dow Jones expect a gain of 0.1%. Housing starts and building permits numbers are also on deck.

Investors have spent the week assessing the direction of the U.S. economy, particularly after this week’s hotter-than-expected consumer price index data and a surprisingly steep decline in January retail sales, which may indicate further weakness in consumer spending.

For the week, the broad market index is up by less than 0.1%. The Dow, meanwhile, is 0.3% higher for the week after raking in its biggest one-day loss since March 2023 on Tuesday. The NASDAQ, however, is lower by 0.53%.

In corporate news, shares of food delivery service DoorDash dropped 7.4% on a wider-than-expected loss, while digital advertising company Trade Desk popped about 18.9% after topping analysts’ fourth-quarter revenue estimates and offering an upbeat outlook for the first quarter.

Shares of semiconductor equipment maker Applied Materials also jumped 12% on positive earnings results.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 jumped 0.9% pushing closer to an all-time high for the index, while Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index vaulted 2.5%.

Oil prices sank 45 cents to $77.58 U.S. a barrel.

Gold prices poked higher $4.20 to $2,019.20 U.S. an ounce.