Financial News · Live Terminal

Page 4234 of 4249

Canada's Labor Market Shows "Some Signs of Stabilization" in March, But There Are Buts, says Desjardins

After a string of job losses to begin the year, Canada's labour market had "some signs of stabilization" in March, says Royce Mendes at Desjardins after the release of Friday's Labour Force Survey (LFS) showing the Canadian economy added back 14,000 jobs in March, leaving the unemployment rate unchanged at 6.7%.But, he adds, all of the new positions were part-time, with full-time jobs "stable" after a "devastating" decline of 108,000 in February.Mendes also notes while the year-over-year pace of average hourly earnings accelerated in March, the pickup was due to compositional effects as Statistics Canada said average hourly earnings rose just 3.6% when keeping the composition fixed, suggesting wages "aren't actually heating up."The bank's tracking for Q1 gross domestic product remains around 1.5% to 2.0%, roughly in line with the Bank of Canada's January forecast.Overall, Mendes adds, there's nothing in Friday's LFS to suggest that the economy is perking up. Despite upgrading its oil price forecasts, Desjardins continues to believe central bankers will remain on the sidelines for the remainder of this year, given persistent slack in the economy.

$CXY

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Consumer Stocks Mixed Pre-Bell Friday

Consumer stocks were mixed pre-bell Friday, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) slightly lower and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) advancing by 0.1%.Brown-Forman (BF.A, BF.B) was approached by Sazerac about a potential transaction amid ongoing discussions with French spirits company Pernod Ricard, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Brown-Forman stock was up more than 1% premarket.TAL Education Group (TAL), Baidu (BIDU), along with several other venture capital entities, participated in the Series B investment round for Chinese artificial intelligence developer ShengShu Technology, the AI company said. TAL Education Group shares were up more than 1% pre-bell.JD.com (JD) shares were 0.7% higher after the company said it closed its offering of 10 billion Chinese renminbi ($1.46 billion) of senior unsecured notes.

$BF.A$BF.B$BIDU$JD$TAL$XLP$XLY

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Tech Stocks Edge Higher Premarket Friday

Technology stocks were edging higher premarket Friday, with the State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) up 0.3% and the State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor ETF (XSD) advancing by 1.2%.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) shares were up more than 2% after the company reported Q1 net revenue of 1.134 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($35.69 billion), up from NT$839.25 billion.Lumentum Holdings (LITE) is seeing demand for its optical components among the US hyperscalers accelerating, putting it on course to fill its order books through 2028, Bloomberg News reported, citing Chief Executive Michael Hurlston. Shares of Lumentum Holdings were up more than 5% pre-bell.ASE Technology (ASX) stock was up more than 1% after the company reported unaudited net revenue of 61.58 billion New Taiwan dollars ($1.94 billion) for March, up 18% sequentially and 15% from a year ago.

$ASX$LITE$TSM$XLK$XSD

US Markets148d ago

Chinese Producer Prices Return to Inflation After 41 Months of Declines

Chinese producer prices ended 41 consecutive months of declines in March, returning to inflation for the first time since 2022.Factory-gate prices rose 0.5% last month, reversing the 0.9% decline in February, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics released Friday.Median estimates by analysts polled by Bloomberg and Reuters saw inflation of 0.4%.Analysts at ING believe that the return to inflation in producer prices could translate to reflationary momentum across the Chinese economy.Producer price inflation was most evident in a 5.2% year-over-year increase in the oil and gas extraction industry prices, up from a 14.8% fall in the first two months, ING analysts said.However, Macquarie analysts say the PPI rebound is a one-off cost shock rather than reflation, also due to oil prices.Non-ferrous metals, computer and telecom, and coal and steel producer prices also drove upward PPI, Macquarie said.Meanwhile, the consumer price index, a measure of inflation, rose 1% year over year in March, slower than the 1.3% increase in February.Chinese consumer price increases were slower than the 1.2% rise expected by economists polled by Reuters.Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, went up 1.1%.The deceleration was due to normal price declines following the Chinese New Year festivities, ING said.Pork prices slid 11.5% year over year, the National Bureau of Statistics said.On a monthly basis, CPI ticked down 0.7%, the statistics bureau said.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE

Mining & Metals148d ago

GMV Minerals Says Drilling Due to Start at Mexican Hat Project, Arizona

GMV Minerals (GMV.V) Friday said drilling at its Mexican Hat Gold project in Arizona will start in the next week and is expected to last approximately two months.A statement noted 30 holes will be drilled, amounting to near 7,000 meters of diamond drill core. The drilling program is primarily infill designed to confirm and upgrade the resource model from an inferred mineral resource, the statement said.GMV confirms that it is fully funded for the 2026 drill and field season.GMV shares closed up $0.005, to $0.20, on Thursday on the TSX Venture Exchange.

$GMV.V

Asia148d ago

Yuzhou Group Logs 482 Million Yuan in March Contracted Sales

Yuzhou Group (HKG:1628) recorded contracted sales of 482 million yuan in March, with a sales area of 37,351 square meters, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing.The property company's average selling price stood at approximately 12,907 yuan per square meter for the month.In the first quarter of 2026, the accumulated sales amount was 1.37 billion yuan, with a sales area of 108,232 square meters and an average selling price of 12,700 yuan per square meter.

HKG:1628

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Energy

Energy stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLE) declining by 0.2%.The United States Oil Fund (USO) was down 1% and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) was 0.3% lower.Front-month US West Texas Intermediate crude oil was 0.3% lower at $97.55 per barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Global benchmark North Sea Brent crude oil fell 0.6% to $95.38 per barrel, and natural gas futures were down 0.1% at $2.67 per 1 million British Thermal Units.ConocoPhillips (COP) has sent a team to Venezuela to evaluate the prospects of oil drilling in the country, several media outlets reported, citing a company statement. Shares of ConocoPhillips were 0.4% lower pre-bell.

$COP

Asia148d ago

Alco's Co-Chairs Steps Down; Successors Named

Alco (HKG:0328) said co-chairpersons Liao Liping and Tian Yi have resigned effective Friday to devote more time to their personal endeavors, according to a same-day Hong Kong bourse filing.The consumer electronics company, on the same day, named Pan Ying as its new chair.Pan has served as the CEO of Shengjun Capital since March 2021.

HKG:0328

Asia148d ago

Kong Sun's Electricity Output Declines in Q1

Kong Sun's (HKG:0295) solar power plants generated around 58,204 megawatt-hours of electricity in the first quarter of 2026, down from 73,664 megawatt-hours a year prior, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing.As of March 31, the electricity services provider's total installed capacity stood at 300 megawatts.

HKG:0295

Asia148d ago

Taiwan Kong King's Sales Revenue Slides 86% in March

Taiwan Kong King (TPE:3093) reported March net sales revenue of NT$49.7 million, down 86% from NT$343.9 million a year earlier, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing by parent Wong's Kong King International (HKG:0532).In the first quarter of 2026, semiconductor maker Taiwan Kong King's sales revenue slipped 53% to NT$267.6 million from NT$572.5 million in the year-ago period.

HKG:0532TPE:3093

Oil & Energy148d ago

EMEA Oil Update: Prices Below $100 as Middle East Conflict Lingers

Crude oil futures attempted to stabilize below $100 threshold on Friday as significant physical supply constraints counteracted optimism surrounding the two-weeks ceasefire.The front-month Murban crude contract dropped 1.7% at $97.97 per barrel. Brent futures contract eased 0.4% at $95.91/bbl."Crude prices try to [stabilize] below [$]100 following the sharpest weekly drop since last June yet remain underpinned by mixed signals surrounding the proposed peace plan, a roughly 600,000 b/d cut in Saudi production capacity, and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz since late February," Saxo Bank analysts said."Meanwhile, spot Brent transactions continue to clear at notable premiums to futures, underscoring mounting supply stress as refiners scramble to replace disrupted Middle East flows," they added.An April 9-dated news article by the Saudi Press Agency citing the Energy Ministry referred to an attack "recently" on a pumping station on the East-West pipeline, which it said caused a loss of about 700,000 barrels in throughput.It did not make mention of the origin of the attack but a source told Reuters on Wednesday that it came from Iran, damaging Saudi Arabia's main alternative route to export markets since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.Market analysts warned that the damage to infrastructure may cause long-term disruptions. Oil and gas output has already been scaled back, and refinery operations remain curtailed, meaning it could take weeks or months to fully reverse the supply shock.Analysts from ING noted that while there was initial optimism regarding a resolution to the six-week conflict, geopolitical risk premiums remain high following new threats from Washington toward Tehran.US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Thursday amid reports that Tehran has started charging transit fees on tankers navigating the Strait of Hormuz, as shipping through the key waterway remains largely restricted despite the ceasefire deal."There are reports that Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the Hormuz Strait," Trump said in a social media post on Truth Social, "They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!"According to TRM Labs Thursday note, Iran's new toll framework requires payments of up to $2 million per vessel payable in cryptocurrency or Chinese yuan generating an estimated $20 million in daily revenue for Tehran.Further tightening the squeeze, the Tass news agency reported citing a senior Iranian source that Iran will limit transit to a maximum of 15 ships per day.The source reportedly said that under the current ceasefire, "fewer than 15 ships per day" will be permitted to sail via the Strait of Hormuz, according to the report.All eyes are now on the high-stakes talks between a US delegation and Iranian officials scheduled for this weekend.

Asia148d ago

JD.com Sells 10 Billion Yuan Bonds

JD.com (HKG:9618) completed the offering of 10 billion yuan of bonds divided into two types, according to a Friday Hong Kong bourse filing.Of the total, 7.5 billion yuan of bonds carry a 2.05% interest rate and will fall due 2031, while the remaining 2.5 billion yuan 2.75% bonds will mature in 2036.The e-commerce giant will use proceeds for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of debt and interest.The listing of and permission to deal in the bonds on the Hong Kong bourse will become effective April 13.

HKG:9618

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Financial

Financial stocks were leaning lower premarket Friday, with the State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF) declining by 0.1%.The Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) was 0.3% lower and its bearish counterpart Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ) was up 0.2%.Switzerland's criminal court said Friday it has discontinued a proceeding against UBS (UBS) in connection with alleged money laundering in a case involving Mozambican state-owned companies. UBS Group shares were 0.8% higher pre-bell.

$UBS

Mining & Metals148d ago

NeXGold Mining Provides Latest Drills Results from Goliath Gold Complex; Rose 4.6% on Thursday

NeXGold Mining (NEXG.V), which saw its shares gain near 5% today, reported Friday additional results from the ongoing diamond drilling program at the Goliath gold complex in Ontario.The company in a statement cited highlights including 1.79 grams per tonne gold over 25.6 meters, 3.22 g/t gold over 10.5 m, and 1.49 g/t gold over 11.0 m.NeXGold said the 25,000-meter drill program is focused on the Goldlund deposit, with holes designed to infill and potentially expand open pit mineral resources. It added the results presented include 777 metres of diamond drilling in three drill holes (GL-25-015, GL-25-016, and GL-26-009) that infill and expand mineralization in Zone 4 of the Goldlund Deposit and specifically within Inferred Resources located at the northeast end of the open pit Mineral Resource."I am encouraged by these results, along with those previously reported from this area, which continue to demonstrate a strong tenor of gold mineralization over a 100-m dip extent, and remain open at depth," President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin Bullock said."Looking ahead, our objectives for this program are clear -- upgrade the resource categorization at Goldlund and build mineral resource confidence at depths consistent with open pit mining," Bullock added. "To this effect, we are drilling this area of Inferred Mineral Resources at a spacing consistent with Indicated Mineral Resources at other areas of the deposit."Shares in NEXG rose $0.07 or 4.6% to $1.59 yesterday.

$NEXG.V

Sectors148d ago

Oil Edges Lower Amid a Shaky Ceasefire Between the U.S. and Iran as Israel Continues to Attack Lebanon

Oil prices edged lower early on Friday amid doubts over the state of the ceasefire between Iran and the United States as Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed.West Texas Intermediate crude oil for May delivery was last seen down US$0.29 to US$97.58 per barrel, while June Brent oil was down US$0.27 to US$95.65.A fragile two-week ceasefire for the United States' war on Iran reached this week looked more uncertain on Friday as Iran is said to be refusing to attend peace talks scheduled to be held this weekend in Pakistan as long as Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon. Reports on Thursday said Israeli Prime Minister plans to open talks with Lebanon but its attacks on Hezbollah militants in the country continue."Western outlets have reported that the Iranian delegation has already arrived in-country while some Iranian outlets dispute this claim, continuing to suggest that the talks are conditional on a ceasefire with Lebanon where Israel / Hezbollah continue to trade strikes," Tudor, Pickering, Holt analyst Matt Portillo wrote.Iran continues to block the passage of tankers stranded in the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz, the choke point for exports from the region that supplies 20% of daily oil demand. The closure of the Strait has pushed oil futures up 41% since the start of the conflict, but spot prices have risen even more, reaching a record high this week as buyers hunt for supply."The physical market remains relatively supported as traders resist significant revisions in differentials in the near term, largely opting for a "show me" mentality despite speculation over the future of Strait of Hormuz transits swirling in oil markets. While Dated (spot) Brent trimmed from Tuesday's all-time record of $144.42/bbl (assessed at $124.68/bbl on April 8) and Middle Eastern cash differentials waned, Atlantic Basin crudes have continued to see strength as limited prompt availability of cargoes remains," Christopher Louney, a commodities strategist at RBC Capital Markets, wrote.

$CLK6$LCOM6$USO

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Health Care

Health care stocks were steady pre-bell Friday, with the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) inactive and the State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLV) marginally lower.Telix Pharmaceuticals (TLX) shares were up more than 5% after the company said the US Food and Drug Administration accepted its resubmitted new drug application for its investigational glioma imaging agent Pixclara.

$TLX

Asia Markets148d ago

US Equity Futures Flat Pre-Bell as Traders Track Developments in Fragile US-Iran Ceasefire

US equity futures were flat pre-bell Friday as traders were wary of the fragile two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran.Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.1% higher, S&P 500 futures were up 0.2%, and Nasdaq futures were 0.3% higher.The Strait of Hormuz remains shut, while Israel continues to exchange fire with Hezbollah in Lebanon, even with the US-Iran talks scheduled on Saturday morning in Islamabad. Israel has said it would start talks with the Lebanese government targeting to disarm Hezbollah and end attacks in the nation.Oil prices were lower, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude down 0.5% at $95.42 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 0.5% lower at $97.42 per barrel.The March consumer price index, released at 8:30 am ET, gained 0.9% as expected, compared with a 0.3% increase in the previous month, according to estimates compiled by Bloomberg. The University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for April is expected at 51.5%, down from 53.3% previously, and the February factory orders are expected to have declined 0.2% following an increase of 0.1% in January. The two reports are scheduled for 10 am ET.In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 1.8% higher, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.6% higher, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 0.5% higher. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was up 0.4%, and Germany's DAX index was up 0.8% in Europe's early afternoon session.In equities, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) shares were up 2.3% after the company reported higher Q1 net revenue. Marvell Technology (MRVL) shares were 3.5% higher after Barclays upgraded the company's stock to overweight from equalweight.On the losing side, ServiceNow (NOW) shares were down 1.6% after the company said it is shifting its entire product portfolio from artificial intelligence sidecars to full AI integration. UBS also downgraded the company's stock to neutral from buy.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$MRVL$NOW$TSM

Sectors148d ago

Sector Update: Consumer

Consumer stocks were edging higher pre-bell Friday, with the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) up 0.1% and the State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) advancing by 0.2%.Brown-Forman (BF.A, BF.B) was approached by Sazerac about a potential transaction amid ongoing discussions with French spirits company Pernod Ricard, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Brown-Forman stock was up 1% premarket.

$BF.A$BF.B

Mining & Metals148d ago

Winshear Metals Says Received $170,000 Non-Dilutive Funding Through the Ontario Junior Exploration Program

Winshear Metals (WINS.V) on Friday said that it qualified for and has received $169,892 from the Ontario government through the Ontario Junior Exploration Program (OJEP), covering 50% of the company's qualifying exploration expenditures at the Thunder Bay Project, NW Ontario.The company said that it is planning to conduct a number of detailed infill soil sampling grids as soon as weather conditions permit, followed by airborne magnetics to refine the gold targets for prospecting and drill target definition."The Ontario Junior Exploration Program is an important program initiative provided by the Ontario Government to encourage, facilitate and speed up early stage, generative mineral exploration, which can lead to new mineral deposit discoveries," said Richard Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Winshear. "We are grateful for the support and recognition of what we are working to accomplish on the Thunder Bay Project."

$WINS.V

Treasury148d ago

Canada Posts Small Jobs Gain in March, as Expected

Canada's employment was little changed in March, up 14,000 or 0.1% month over month, while the unemployment rate was unchanged at 6.7%, said the country's statistical agency in Friday's Labour Force Survey (LFS).The job increases were in line with a forecast 14,500 increase and 6.7% unemployement rate provided by MUFG.Across the major age groups, employment held steady and the unemployment rate was little changed, noted Statistics Canada in a statement.Employment rose in the 'other services' industry, which includes repair and maintenance services, by 15,000 and 1.9% month over month, and it also increased in natural resources, up 10,000 and 3.0% month over month. Employment declined in finance, insurance, real estate, rental, and leasing, or down 11,000 and 0.8%.Fewer people were employed in British Columbia (-19,000; -0.7%), while employment rose in Manitoba (+11,000; +1.5%), Saskatchewan (+5,800; +0.9%) and Nova Scotia (+3,900; +0.7%).Average hourly wages among employees increased 4.7% (+$1.68 to $37.73) on a year-over-year basis in March, following growth of 3.9% in February, not seasonally adjusted, added StatsCan.Recent increases in average hourly wages were partly due to a shift in the composition of employment. Using a method that holds constant the composition of employees by occupation and job tenure, average hourly wages grew by 3.6% on a year-over-year basis in March, similar to the rate of growth observed in January (+3.6%) and February 2025 (+3.5%), stated the Ottawa-based agency.The participation rate -- the proportion of the population aged 15 and older who were employed or looking for work -- was unchanged at 64.9%. On a year-over-year basis, the labor force participation rate was down 0.4 percentage point.The LFS estimates are based on a sample and are therefore subject to sampling variability. As a result, monthly estimates will show more variability than trends observed over longer time periods. This analysis focuses on differences between estimates that are statistically significant at the 68% confidence level.LFS estimates at the Canada level do not include the territories. The LFS estimates are the first in a series of labor market indicators released by StatsCan, which includes indicators from programs such as the Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours (SEPH); Employment Insurance Statistics; and the Job Vacancy and Wage Survey.

S&P/TSX CompositeS&P/TSX Composite$CXY

Showing 84661-84680 of 84976

Oil & Energy148d ago