June futures on the S&P/TSX index were flat at 6:41 a.m. ET. Canada's employment change and unemployment rate for March is due at 8:30 a.m. ET, which could provide clues for the Bank of Canada's (BoC) monetary policy path next week.
Traders are presently sticking to their bets that the BoC will hold rates. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended lower for a second day on Wednesday as technology and industrial shares slid and economic data fueled worries that the U.S. economy was headed for a recession. Investors will also be on the lookout for U.S. weekly jobless claims data, for more clues on the state of the labor market, amid recent signs of cooling inflation and fears of an economic downturn.
Weighing on the futures for the commodity heavy TSX, crude prices dipped nearly 0.2% on fears of the potential U.S. recession while spot gold prices slipped 0.1% as the dollar regained some ground. In company news, RBC Capital Markets upgraded Canadian National Railway to "outperform" from "sector perform." Lundin Gold Inc reported an all-time high quarterly gold production in its first quarter update.
COMMODITIES AT 6:41 a.m. ET
Gold futures : $2,024.7; -0.1% US crude : $80.41; -0.25% Brent crude : $84.82; -0.20% FOR CANADIAN MARKETS NEWS, CLICK ON CODES: TSX market report Canadian dollar and bonds report Reuters global stocks poll for Canada Canadian markets directory ($1 = 1.3481 Canadian dollars) (Reporting by Shristi Achar A in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)
