North American stocks look set to open lower Friday, hurt by weak U.S. retail-sales data and a jump in crude-oil prices past US$77 a barrel.

In today’s economic news, the U.S. Commerce Department said June retail sales unexpectedly decreased by a seasonally adjusted 0.1%, dragged down by the auto sector. May sales rose by 0.1%. Economists had forecast retail sales rising 0.4% in June. The decrease was the first in four months.

Separately, the U.S. Labor Department said June import prices increased 0.1%, after rising 1.7% the previous month. May’s increase was revised up from a previous estimate of 1.6%. Wall Street economists had expected June import prices would rise by 0.2%.

In other economic news, reports are due later on consumer sentiment and May business inventories.

Here at home, Statistics Canada said that a big boost in the production of aerospace products overshadowed an otherwise weak May for manufacturers.

The government agency said shipments advanced 0.3% to $50.9 billion in May, on the heels of widespread gains in the aerospace industry. The production of aerospace products and parts soared 79.8% to $1.6 billion in May, following a 36.6% drop in April.

The Canadian dollar opened at US88.38¢, down 0.01 of a cent.

The deteriorating situation in the Middle East helped send crude-oil futures to fresh all-time highs Friday, and the potential for even higher values remains a strong possibility. Oil prices rose 70¢ to US$77.40 a barrel in New York trading after chalking up a new all-time record of US$78.40 a barrel earlier.

In earnings’s news, General Electric reported a 4.4% rise in quarterly profit as gains from the sale of its insurance operations and strength at its health-care, consumer-finance and industrial operations offset continued weakness at NBC Universal. The company also reaffirmed its outlook for the year.

In M&A news, Petro-Canada announced late Thursday that it was bowing out of a bidding war over junior Canada Southern Petroleum, one day after rival Canadian Oil Sands Trust sweetened its bid for a third time. Canadian Oil Sands has offered US$13.10 per share.

Inco Ltd. (has extended its takeover offer for Falconbridge Ltd. to allow shareholders more time to consider it, but has made no changes to its bid for its fellow nickel miner. The offer, which was set to expire Thursday at 8 p.m. EDT will now be open until 3 a.m. July 24.

Asia markets declined Friday amid the surge in oil prices and the well-flagged quarter-point rate increase by the Bank of Japan, which ended the country’s zero interest-rate policy. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 lost 252.71 points, or 1.7%, to end at 14,825.24.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 169.77 points, or 1.04 per cent, to 16,135.71.


Major European stock markets edged lower on Friday, with Germany’s DAX-30 down 0.9%.

North American stocks tumbled Thursday as geopolitical tensions and negative corporate earnings warnings led to selloffs in both Toronto and New York markets.

The S&P/TSX composite index dove 169.13, or 1.44%, to 11.601.94.

The S&P/TSX Venture Exchange index fell back 29.33, or 1.10%, to 2,630.37.

In New York, higher oil prices and analysts’ downgrades had investors running for the door.

The Dow industrials dropped 166.89 points, or 1.5% to 10,846.29. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 36.13 points, or 1.7% to 2,054.11, dropping to its lowest level since October. The S&P 500 Index dropped 16.31 points, or 1.3% to 1,242.29, putting the index into negative territory for 2006.