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Struggling Stock Market Open on Bay Street; Focus on Canadian GDP and US Personal Consumption Expenditures Data

Canadian and American stock market futures, preceding the release of Canadian GDP data and the U.S. personal consumption expenditure report, suggest a sluggish opening on Wall Street Friday.

, and Administrator

2025 September 8 . 8:03 PM

2 min read

Pointing to a potential slow start on Bay Street, future indices suggest weakness. Attention is... — Pointing to a potential slow start on Bay Street, future indices suggest weakness. Attention is focused on Canadian GDP and US PCE data in the upcoming economic reports.

Struggling Stock Market Open on Bay Street; Focus on Canadian GDP and US Personal Consumption Expenditures Data

Investors are treading with caution today as they await the release of a key U.S. inflation report later in the day. This comes amidst a backdrop of recent strong economic data, which has soothed recession jitters but also fueled concerns about persistent inflation.

The Canadian economy showed a positive start to the year, with a 0.5% growth in the first three months of 2025 compared to the previous quarter. On an annualized basis, the Canadian GDP expanded by 2.2% in the first quarter, exceeding expectations of 1.7%.

In the corporate sector, Laurentian Bank (LB.TO) reported net income of $37.5 million and diluted earnings per share of $0.73 for the third quarter of 2025. This represents an increase compared to the same quarter in 2024. However, the specific Canadian stock market institution that reported these figures could not be identified from the provided search results.

BRP Inc. (DOO.TO) also reported a strong performance, with net income of $57.1 million for the second quarter of 2025, up 36% compared to the year-ago quarter.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index opened at a record intraday high of 28,530.19 but ended the day's session at 28,434.80, up by 1.80 points, or 0.01%. Despite this, the Canadian market closed flat on Thursday.

In the commodities market, gold futures are down $4.20 or 0.12% at $3,470.10 an ounce, while silver futures are lower by $0.178 or 0.45% at $39.525 an ounce. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are down $0.53 or 0.81% at $64.07 a barrel.

Investors are also keeping a close eye on other economic indicators due this morning, including the U.S. PCE reading, the Chicago PMI reading, and the Michigan Consumer Sentiment report. The U.S. inflation report might show core personal consumption expenditures prices rose 2.9% in July, the fastest pace in five months.

Geopolitical factors like the Russian-Ukraine conflict are contributing to these concerns. Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday, while the major European markets are exhibiting weakness.

As investors weigh these factors, they may look to take some profits following strong gains earlier in the week. The U.S. inflation report, due later today, is expected to provide valuable insights into the Federal Reserve's possible moves regarding interest rates.