Roger Biduk - Bay Street Lower at Midday

Roger Biduk writes:

The Toronto stock market was lower but well off early levels as financial stocks moved into positive territory and investors sent Research In Motion Ltd. (TSX: RIM.TO) stock higher despite some glum news from the BlackBerry maker.
Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index fell 43.2 points to 8,284.6 after losing 78 points Tuesday.
The TSX Venture Exchange moved down 7.24 points to 723.86.

Following a negative start, RIM shares were up $1.97 to $48.43 even as it said after the market close Tuesday that it sold 300,000 fewer BlackBerrys than expected in the just-completed quarter, at 2.6 million.
It expects to report adjusted earnings of 81 to 83 cents per share for its third quarter ended Nov. 29, on revenue of US$2.75 billion to $2.78 billion. Analysts were expecting 90 cents per share on revenue of US$2.93 billion.
Meanwhile, RIM on Wednesday announced a $66-million takeover bid for data encryption specialist Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC.TO. Certicom shares leaped 76 per cent, gaining 65 cents to $1.50indicating the market is set to accept the RIM offer.

The Canadian dollar was down 0.52 cent to 79.32 cents US amid ongoing economic gloom and political wrangling in Ottawa.

Crude inventories for last week increased by 456,000 barrels, compared to the expected increase of one million. Gasoline inventories fell 1.5 million barrels.
However, the TSX energy sector was down 2.25 per cent as the price of oil gained 48 cents to US$47.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The dip followed Tuesday's slide of $2.32 in the near-month crude contract to the lowest level since May 2005.
Suncor Energy (TSX: SU.TO) advanced 48 cents to $23.61. Nexen Inc. was down $4.63 or 19 per cent to $19.25, on a cooling of takeover speculation that had driven the stock up nine per cent Tuesday.

The TSX financial sector was up one per cent as investors wait for earnings reports from TD Bank (TSX: TD.TO), CIBC (TSX: CM.TO) and National Bank (TSX: NA.TO) Thursday and from Royal Bank (TSX: RY.TO) Friday. Scotiabank (TSX: BNS.TO) reported Tuesday that its fourth-quarter profit fell 67 per cent to $315 million. Royal Bank was up 50 cents to $38.40.

The February bullion contract in New York moved down $$1.40 to US$781.90 an ounce.

Overseas, the FTSE 100 stock index added 0.15 per cent in London, while Germany's DAX gave back 0.8 per cent and Paris CAC 40 moved ahead 0.9 per cent.
Tokyo's Nikkei index closed with a gain of 1.8 per cent, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 1.4 per cent.

www.rogerbiduk.ca
www.rogerbiduk.wordpress.com