TSX Barely Moves in First Hour

Canada's main stock index opened only a tad higher on Thursday, mirroring Wall Street peers, as U.S.-China talks boosted trade deal optimism and investors awaited key job data.The TSX Composite Index eked higher 2.04 points to open the penultimate session for the week at 26,331.04. The Canadian dollar added 0.15 cents to 73.24 cents U.S. On the economic scene, Statistics Canada reported that in April, Canada's merchandise exports dropped 10.8%, while imports fell 3.5%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade deficit with the world widened from $2.3 billion in March to $7.1 billion in April. This was the largest deficit on record.Also, the IVEY PMI for May registered at 48.9, down from a 47.9 reading in April, and way off the 52.0 level in May 2024.ON BAYSTREET The TSX Venture Exchange squeezed 2.19 points higher to 721.62.Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower, as information technology dipped 0.7%, while health-care backed off 0.6%, and utilities fell 0.2%. The four gainers were led by materials, springing 1.3%, gold, up 1.1%, and consumer staples, taking on 0.6%. ON WALLSTREET Stocks fell on Thursday after more reported developments between the U.S. and China on the trade front.The Dow Jones Industrials retreated 102.25 points to 42,325.49.The S&P 500 index shed 8.32 points to 5,962.49The NASDAQ Composite dipped 10.45 points to 19,452.64.During Thursday’s session, shares of bourbon maker Brown-Forman were slated for their worst day on record.Chinese media outlet Xinhua reported Thursday that President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping held a phone call. Beijing’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said in a statement that Trump initiated the call.The U.S. and China agreed to temporarily lower tariffs in May, propelling stocks to sharp gains for the month as investors hoped the worst of the tariff turmoil was behind them. The S&P 500 rose more than 6% last month, scoring its best month since November 2023, along with the NASDAQ.Recently, however, escalating tensions between the U.S. and China has brought volatility back into the market. Investors are now anxiously awaiting any progress on a potential trade deal between the two countries.The report of the call initially gave stocks a bit of a boost following the release of new labor market data Thursday. Jobless claims last week came in at 247,000, an increase of 8,000 from the week before and more than the Dow Jones estimate of 236,000.This comes one day after an estimate of private sector payrolls rose by just 37,000 in May, coming in sharply below the Dow Jones forecast for 110,000 and raising investorsPrices for the 10-year Treasury gained a slight bit of ground, lowering yields to 4.35% from Wednesday’s 4.36%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions. Oil prices recovered 91 cents to $63.76 U.S. a barrel. Gold prices grabbed 80 cents to $3,400.00 U.S. an ounce.