Markets are relatively quiet this morning without any major data to push things in either direction. Jobless claims in the US fell by 29,000 last week, in line with expectations, while productivity in the US in the fourth quarter surged at a 6.9% annual rate as companies continued to cut payrolls as demand stabilized. With companies operating at bare minimum of employees, any increase in output will likely be matched with an increase in hiring over the coming months. TD bank reported profits that doubled from a year ago, pushing the shares to within pennies of a new 52-week high. Greece announced the sale of some
€3-5 billion in ten year bonds, which was oversubscribed by about three times the size of the issue, a positive sign as they try to get their finances in order. The TSX is down 33 pts. The Dow is up 11 pts.
The Loonie has been trading around the break-even point this morning, currently 4 bps higher at US$.9695. The five-year Canada bond yield continues to rise, hitting 2.71% this morning for the first time since mid-January, while the 10-year is unchanged at 3.41%. Gold is down $14 to US$1129.30/oz. Oil is down 92 cents to US$79.95/barrel.
