Canada’s main stock index opened little changed on Friday as energy shares dipped with oil after U.S. President Donald Trump criticized OPEC on Friday for output curbs that have helped raise prices.
The S&P/TSX composite index was up 15.86 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 15,470.28.
Rogers Communications Inc. rose 5 per cent in early trading in response to better-than-expected quarterly results released after the close of trading on Thursday.
Mr. Trump said “artificially” high prices would not be accepted, drawing rebukes from oil-producing countries as prices dipped following his remarks.
“Looks like OPEC is at it again. With record amounts of Oil all over the place, including the fully loaded ships at sea. Oil prices are artificially Very High! No good and will not be accepted!” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter.
Several members of OPEC, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said in response that oil prices were not being artificially inflated. The group is slated to meet in June to decide its next steps after reducing output since January 2017 in a move aimed at supporting prices that had fallen sharply.
Trump gave no details on what action his administration might take regarding oil or OPEC, and representatives for the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Oil prices fell after Trump’s remarks but were still set for a weekly gain.
Brent crude oil futures and U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures hit their highest levels since November 2014 earlier this week, at $74.75 and $69.56 per barrel respectively, buoyed by a tightening market and higher demand.
Following Trump’s tweet, Brent futures were at $73.25 per barrel, down 53 cents from their last close. WTI futures were down 45 cents at $67.84 a barrel.
U.S. stock indexes opened flat on Friday, as strong earnings from industrials General Electric and Honeywell were offset by declines in technology stocks and oil price.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7.50 points, or 0.03 per cent, at the open to 24,657.39. The S&P 500 opened lower by 0.57 points, or 0.02 per cent, at 2,692.56. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 17.41 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 7,220.64 at the opening bell.
GE posted quarterly results that topped estimates and affirmed its 2018 forecasts sending its shares up 6.1 per cent in early trading in what one analyst called a relief rally.
Honeywell rose 0.8 per cent after reporting higher-than-expected quarterly profit and lifting its full-year earnings forecast.
First-quarter profit at S&P 500 companies are expected to have recorded their strongest gain in seven years. Of the 73 components that have reported through Thursday, 76.7 percent have topped profit expectations, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
But, investors are questioning if the tax cuts are going to be as beneficial as expected and are worried rising interest rates would hit borrowing costs, said Andre Bakhos, managing director at New Vines Capital LLC in Bernardsville, New Jersey.
“There are some lingering concerns around interest rates, and earnings, although so far are very robust, and the forward-looking statements aren’t as exciting,” Bakhos said.
The indexes are on track for their second week of gains in a row as earnings reports so far have been largely upbeat and concerns around Syria and trade tensions with China eased.
Apple was down 2.4 per cent and a host of chipmakers were also lower, following the lingering effects of Taiwan Semiconductor’s warning on Thursday of softer demand for smartphones.
Twitter shares rose 2.3 per cent after bullish brokerage actions, including MKM Partners’ upgrade to “buy”.
Down 0.3 per cent on the day, the MSCI All Country World Index was on track for its second week in the black after a strong start to the corporate earnings season. But it has struggled to recover all of its losses since a violent selloff knocked it off a record high in February.
A strong earnings season could offset fears of slowing global growth and help stock markets recover from a turbulent first quarter which saw a spike in volatility, increased trade tensions between the United States and China, and spiking geopolitical tensions in the Middle East over Syria.
“While fundamentals remain robust, geopolitics and trade war fears, concerns over slowing global growth, and idiosyncratic issues in the tech sector have all weighed,” Deutsche Bank strategists wrote in note to clients, noting that a full-blown trade war between the U.S. and China was a major risk.
“In equities we see the recent correction as overdone, and the first quarter earnings season could act as the needed circuit breaker.”
Earlier, in Asia, shares slipped as a warning from the world’s largest contract chipmaker knocked the tech sector.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing cut its revenue target to the low end of forecasts, blaming softer demand for smartphones. Shares in Apple Inc and its suppliers fell on Wall Street on Thursday, paving the way for Friday’s falls.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 1.1 per cent, again led by a 1.6-per-cent fall in technology.
Shares in Europe were down 0.2 per cent, but remain up half a percent on the week and set for their fourth straight week of gains.
Dovish remarks overnight from Bank of England Governor Mark Carney weakened the pound, helping the internationally exposed FTSE 100 index outperform with a gain of nearly half a percent.
Reuters