Bay Street Seen Opening On Weak Note

(RTTNews) - Canadian shares are likely to open on a weak note on Friday, weighed down by losses in European markets, lower crude oil prices, and concerns about geopolitical tensions.

Worries about the Covid situation in China, and growth concerns amid rising interest rates are also likely to hurt the market.

In company news, Rio Tinto Plc, an Anglo-Australian mining major, said it has closed its acquisition of Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd (TRQ.TO) for a consideration of approximately $3.1 billion, simplifying its ownership of the Oyu Tolgoi mine in Mongolia.

Rio Tinto acquired the about 49% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Turquoise Hill that Rio Tinto and its affiliates did not already own for C$43.00 per share in cash.

On the economic front, a reading of Canada's new housing price index for the month of November is due at 8:30 AM ET.

The Canadian market ended sharply lower on Thursday as hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve, and rising concerns about global economic growth due to surging interest rates dented sentiment.

The Fed, the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, and the Swiss National Bank, all raised their interest rates, and most of these central banks said further increases are likely as inflation remains at elevated levels.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 291.02 points or 1.46% at 19,600.63. The index dropped to a low of 19,512.87 in the session.

Asian markets ended weak on Friday as interest rate hikes and a hawkish posture by central banks worldwide spooked investors and triggered fears of a recession.

European stocks are down in negative territory, posting sharp losses for a second straight session, as rising fears of a recession following the latest rate hikes by global central banks and the hawkish tone of the Federal Reserve and a few other banks weigh on sentiment.

Investors are also reacting to the latest batch of economic data from Europe, and closely following Covid - related reports from China.

In commodities trading, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $1.71 or about 2.25% at $74.40 a barrel.

Gold futures are up $5.70 or 0.32% at $1,793.50 an ounce, while Silver futures are down $0.220 or 0.94% at $23.085 an ounce.