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| | US Market |  | | NYSE | AMEX | Dow Jones | Nasdaq |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | | The major U.S. index futures are pointing to a roughly flat opening on Friday, with stocks likely to extend the lackluster performance seen in the previous session.
Political uncertainty may keep some traders on the sidelines amid reports President Donald Trump plans to remove White House national security advisor H.R. McMaster.
The White House has denied the reports, with press secretary Sarah Sanders saying there are "no changes" at the National Security Council.
Following the weakness seen on Wednesday, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Thursday. The major averages spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line before closing mixed.
While the Dow climbed 115.54 points or 0.5 percent to 24,873.66, the Nasdaq dipped 15.07 points or 0.2 percent to 7,418.74 and the S&P 500 edged down 2.15 points or 0.1 percent to 2,747.33.
The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders digested a slew of U.S. economic data, including a report from the Labor Department showing initial jobless claims edged lower in the week ended March 10th.
The report said initial jobless claims dipped to 226,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's revised level of 230,000.
Economists had expected jobless claims to slip to 226,000 from the 231,000 originally reported for the previous week.
A separate report released by the Labor Department showed import prices increased by more than expected in the month of February.
The Labor Department said import prices rose by 0.4 percent in February after climbing by a revised 0.8 percent in January.
Economists had expected import prices to edge up by 0.2 percent compared to the 1.0 percent jump originally reported for the previous month.
The report also said export prices increased by 0.2 percent in February after rising by 0.8 percent in January. Export prices were expected to rise by 0.3 percent.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York also released a report showing business activity in the New York manufacturing sector grew robustly in the month of March.
The New York Fed said its general business conditions index climbed to 22.5 in March from 13.1 in February, with a positive reading indicating growth in the manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to edge up to 15.0.
Meanwhile, a report from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve showed growth in the Philadelphia manufacturing sector slowed in the month of March.
The Philly Fed said its diffusion index for current general activity fell to 22.3 in March from 25.8 in February, although a positive reading still indicates growth in the manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to drop to 23.0.
Shortly after the start of trading, the National Association of Home Builders released a report showing a modest decrease in homebuilder confidence in March.
The report said the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index edged down to 70 in March from a revised 71 in February. Economists had expected the index to dip to 71 from the 72 originally reported for the previous month.
Most of the major sectors ended the day showing only modest moves, contributing to the lackluster close by the broader markets.
Energy stocks saw substantial weakness, however, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index plunging by 2.6 percent and the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index slumping by 1.9 percent. The weakness among energy stocks came despite a modest increase by the price of crude oil.
Considerable weakness was also visible among gold stocks, as reflected by the 1.5 percent drop by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The index ended the session at its lowest closing level in over a year. A decrease by the price of gold contributed to the weakness in the sector.
Chemical and biotechnology stocks also showed notable moves to the downside over the course of the trading session.
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| | U.S. Economic Reports | | | | CADUSD | Oil | Gold | Allbanc |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | |
New residential construction in the U.S. showed a sharp pullback in the month of February, according to a report released by the Commerce Department.
The report said housing starts plunged by 7.0 percent to an annual rate of 1.236 million in February after jumping by 10.1 percent to a revised 1.329 million in January.
Economists had expected housing starts to drop by 2.7 percent to a rate of 1.290 million from the 1.326 million originally reported for the previous month.
The Commerce Department said building permits also tumbled by 5.7 percent to a rate of 1.298 million in February after surging up by 5.9 percent to a revised 1.377 million in January.
Building permits, an indicator of future housing demand, had been expected to slump by 5.4 percent to a rate of 1.32 million from the 1.396 million originally reported for the previous month.
At 9:15 am ET, the Federal Reserve is scheduled to release its report on industrial production in the month of February. Production is expected to rise by 0.3 percent in February after slipping by 0.1 percent in January.
The University of Michigan is due to release its preliminary report on consumer sentiment in the month of March at 10 am ET. The consumer sentiment is expected to edge down to 99.3 in March after rising to 99.7 in February.
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| | Stocks in Focus |
Shares of Tiffany & Co. (TIF) have come under pressure in pre-market trading even though the luxury goods retailer reported better than expected fourth quarter results.
e-Commerce company Overstock.com (OSTK) is also seeing significant pre-market weakness after reporting a fourth quarter net loss on lower than expected revenues.
Shares of Zumiez (ZUMZ) may also move to the downside after the activewear retailer reported fourth quarter earnings that came in below analyst estimates.
On the other hand, shares of Adobe Systems (ADBE) are moving higher in pre-market trading after the software developer reported better than expected fiscal first quarter results.
Electronics manufacturer Jabil (JBL) may also see early strength after reporting fiscal second quarter results that exceeded expectations.
Shares of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) are likely to be in focus after the healthcare giant received a $2.1 billion offer for its LifeScan business from private equity firm Platinum Equity. |
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| | Europe |
European stocks are seeing modest strength on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.1 percent, the U.K.?s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index are both up by 0.2 percent.
NEX Group shares have soared in London after the financial technology company received a preliminary takeover offer from U.S.-based exchange operator CME Group.
Altice has also rallied after confirming plans to sell its telecommunications towers in France and Portugal.
Drill services contractor Capital Drilling has spiked higher after reporting better than expected financial results.
Meanwhile, Berkeley Group Holdings has fallen after the British company said it is unable to ramp up homebuilding due to planning constraints.
Old Mutual shares have also dropped on reports that the financial services group is selling three businesses in Latin America to China Minsheng Investment Group International.
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| | Asia | | | | USDCAD | USDEUR | USDGBP | USDJPY |  |  |  |  | | Please click on the images to view our interactive charts | |
Asian stocks ended mostly lower on Friday as trade-war worries persisted and reports suggested that special counsel Robert Mueller has subpoenaed documents related to U.S. President Donald Trump's businesses, adding to the continued sense of political uncertainty in the U.S.
Meanwhile, the White House denied reports that Trump has decided to remove national security adviser H.R. McMaster from the administration.
Chinese and Hong Kong stocks fell on concerns over the increasingly protectionist policies of the Trump administration. China's Shanghai Composite Index fell 20.72 points or 0.6 percent to 3,269.88, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index edged down 39.13 points or 0.1 percent to 31,501.97.
Japanese shares also closed lower, hurt by a firmer yen as investors fretted about U.S. political uncertainty and official data showed Japan's industrial production declined more than initially estimated in January.
A widening political scandal over the cut-price sale of government land to a supporter of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also overshadowed optimism over the Bank of Japan's regular debt-buying operation.
The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 127.44 points or 0.6 percent to 21,676.51 but ended the week higher by 1 percent. The broader Topix Index closed 0.4 percent lower at 1,736.63.
Exporter Canon dropped 0.9 percent and Sony lost 1.4 percent. Japan Petroleum fell 1.6 percent despite crude oil prices rising overnight. Electronics firm TDK Corp tumbled 3.3 percent and utility Kansai Electric Power declined 2.4 percent.
Meanwhile, Australian shares eked out modest gains after Wesfarmers unveiled plans to spin off its Coles supermarket division. Shares of the retail giant soared as much as 6.3 percent, while rival Woolworths advanced 1.3 percent.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 28.50 points or 0.5 percent to 5,949.40, and the broader All Ordinaries Index ended up 27.30 points or 0.5 percent at 6,054.90.
Strong base metal prices helped lift mining heavyweights, with BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto both rising around 1 percent. South32 jumped 5.6 percent.
Premier Investments shares ended up over 6 percent. The company said its net profit for the first half rose 9.4 percent on record sales at its stationary brand Smiggle and sleepwear chain Peter Alexander.
On the other hand, banks Commonwealth, NAB and Westpac dropped around half a percent to extend recent losses amid a government backed inquiry into the sector.
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| | Commodities |
Crude oil futures are edging up $0.20 to $61.39 a barrel after rising $0.23 to $61.19 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after sliding $7.80 to $1,317.80 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are climbing $2.10 to $1,319.90 an ounce.
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 105.75 yen compared to the 106.34 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.2325 compared to yesterday?s $1.2305.
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