TSX Down On Stimulus Concerns - Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks were lingering in the red Thursday morning amid weak commodities, with the US dollar recovering its recent losses versus a basket of currencies on speculation the Federal Reserve may begin tapering its stimulus program sooner rather than later.

Elsewhere, Asian stocks settled lower overnight, with Japanese shares falling sharply as sentiment dented by negative cues from Wall Street and the Bank of Japan's decision to hold off on additional easing measures. Meanwhile European shares were trading weak amid a mixed batch of macroeconomic data out of Europe.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index lost 35.39 points or 0.26 percent to 13,419.94.

The price of crude oil was lingering around its four-month low Thursday morning amid a generally steady U.S. dollar. Yesterday, oil plunged to end at a four-month low after an official Energy Information Administration weekly oil report showed U.S. crude stockpiles to have jumped more than expected last week. The EIA's weekly oil report showed U.S. crude oil inventories surged 4.10 million barrels for the weekended October 25. This compares with analysts expectation of 3.5 million barrels gain in crude oil inventories.

Crude for December edged down $0.53 to $96.24 a barrel.

In the oil patch, Suncor Energy (SU.TO) edged up 0.50 percent after reporting third quarter operating earnings of C$1.426 billion or C$0.95 per common share up from C$1.292 billion or C$0.84 per common share in the prior year. Analysts expected the company to report earnings of C$0.87 per share for the quarter.

The price of gold was moving lower Thursday morning, with the US dollar recovering from recent losses versus a basket of currencies following the U.S. Federal Reserve policy meet outcome. Gold for December lost $24.50 to $1,324.80 an ounce.

Among gold plays, Barrick Gold (ABX.TO) said that its third-quarter net income declined to $172 million or $0.17 per share from $649 million or $0.65 per share in the same quarter last year. Adjusted net earnings for the quarter slipped to $577 million or $0.58 per share from $880 million or $0.88 per share last year. Analysts expected the company to report earnings of $0.51 per share. The stock was down nearly 5 percent.

Eldorado Gold (ELD.TO) shed over 3 percent after it said its unit Eldorado Gold Coöperatief UA will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Glory Resources Ltd not already owned Eldorado for about A$30.5 million. Eldorado currently owns 19.9 percent of the shares in Glory. Under the Offer, each shareholder of Glory other than Eldorado will be entitled to receive A$0.17 cash per share, which represents a premium of about 42 percent over the closing price of Glory on October 30.

Royal Gold (RGL.TO) lost over7 percent, while Seabridge Gold (SEA.TO) losing more than 5 percent.

Aerospace and transportation company Bombardier Inc. (BBD_B.TO) lost over 8 percent after reporting that its third-quarter net income decreased to $147 million or $0.08 per share from $172 million or $0.09 per share in the year ago quarter. On an adjusted basis, net income amounted to $165 million or $0.09 per share, compared to $173 million or $0.09 per share in the same period the previous year.

Business software provider OpenText Corp. (OTC.TO) reported improved first-quarter net income of $30.6 million or $0.52 per share compared to $19.4 million or $0.33 per share last year. Adjusted earnings rose to $1.37 per share from $1.31 per share last year. Analysts expected the company to report earnings of $1.30 per share for the quarter. The stock was down 6 percent.

In economic news, Statistics Canada said real gross domestic product rose for a second month, adding 0.3 percent in August, after increasing 0.6 percent in July.

From the U.S., the Labor Department said initial jobless claims dipped to 340,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week's unrevised figure of 350,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to fall to 335,000.

Elsewhere, Germany's forward-looking consumer confidence index declined unexpectedly heading into November, a survey by market research group GfK revealed. The confidence index edged down to 7 in November from 7.1 in October. Economists expected an increase to 7.2.

Germany's retail sales unexpectedly declined for a second straight month in September, data released by Destatis showed on. Retail sales dropped a calendar-and-seasonally-adjusted 0.4 percent month-on-month, while economists' consensus was a 0.4 percent gain. In August, sales fell 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, euro zone inflation slowed unexpectedly in October largely due to a notable fall in energy prices, official data showed. Inflation fell to 0.7 percent in October from 1.1 percent in September, flash estimate published by Eurostat revealed. The rate was expected to stay unchanged at 1.1 percent in October.