A.M. Market numbers: Friday, July 24, 2009

| North American markets | International markets | Bonds | Currency | Commodities |

North American markets appear poised to follow overseas stocks higher today, extending a rally that hasn’t been checked by mixed corporate earnings reports.

Asian markets rose overnight, and the rally extended into trading in Europe early Friday as markets around the world cheered Thursday’s stunning advances on major markets in Toronto and New York.

Toronto’s S&P/TSX composite index jumped 243.33 points to 10,675.68, while New York’s Dow Jones industrial average jumped almost 190 points to its first close above the 9,000 mark since January.

Canadian investors took heart from a Bank of Canada report saying the recession would end in this country during this quarter and the economy would bounce back next year twice as strongly as the United States.

Markets dismissed lower earnings results from heavyweights such as Potash Corp. (TSX:POT) and EnCana Corp. (TSX:ECA).

In the U.S., investors rallied around news that existing home sales rose in June for the third straight month and by more than economists had expected.

More solid earnings reports and forecasts from companies, including Ford Motor Co., added to the market’s optimism.

Investors seem to be looking past disappointing reports, like the one from tech giant Microsoft Corp., which said after the market closed Thursday that its revenue fell short of analysts’ expectations.

In just nine days, both the Dow and the Standard & Poor’s 500 index have climbed 11% as companies’ better-than-expected earnings reports confirm for investors that the economy is indeed improving and that a turnaround is possible by the end of this year.

Such hopes had carried the market up as much as 40% this spring, but that rally fizzled last month as still-growing unemployment and weak consumer confidence fed doubts about the economy’s recovery.

Despite the market’s impressive performance over the past two weeks, analysts warn there are many obstacles that could threaten the advance. Many retailers have yet to report their quarterly results, and unemployment is projected to reach 10% in the U.S. this year.

Just a handful of earnings reports are expected Friday from big-name companies and no major economic reports are scheduled.

Among them is Loblaw (TSX:L), Canada’s largest grocery store operator, which announced early Friday it will pay $225 million for T&T Supermarket Inc., a 17-store chain that is the country’s largest Asia food retailer.

Ahead of the market’s open, Dow Jones industrial average futures rose 28, or 0.3%, to 9,019. Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures are up 2.80, or 0.3%, to 971.70, while Nasdaq 100 index futures gained 2, or 0.1 per cent, to 1,586.

The Canadian dollar opened at 92.28 cents US, up 0.24 of a cent from Thursday’s close.

Oil prices climbed higher in premarket trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, adding 18 cents to US$67.34 a barrel.

Overseas, Japan’s Nikkei stock average jumped 1.6%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.8%. The Hang Seng stands at its highest level in 10 months. In late morning trading in Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.6%t, Germany’s DAX index was up 0.5%, and France’s CAC-40 added 0.5%.

(The Canadian Press)

North American markets

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Dow Jones	9,069.29	+188.03 or +2.12%	+3.34%
S&P 500	976.29	+22.22 or +2.33%	+8.09%
NASDAQ	1,973.60	+47.22 or +2.45%	+25.15%
TSX Composite	10,675.68	+243.33 or +2.33%	+18.78%

International markets

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	Open	Change	YTD
Nikkei	9,944.55	+151.61 or +1.55%	+12.25%
Hang Seng	19,982.79	+165.09 or +0.83%	+38.89%
SENSEX	15,378.96	+147.92 or +0.97%	+59.41%
FTSE 100	4,583.05	+23.25 or +0.51%	+3.36%
CAC 40	3,380.21	+6.49 or +0.19%	+5.04%
DAX	5,250.04	+2.76 or +0.05%	+9.14%

Bonds

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Bonds	$Current	$Previous	%Yield
Cdn. 10-year bond	101.83	102.56	3.53
Cdn. 30-year bond	115.79	116.64	4.05
U.S. 10-year bond	95.43	96.53	3.68
U.S. 30-year bond	94.81	96.75	4.57

Currency

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BoC Open	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.9228	0.9204
US $	1.0755	1.0865

Euro Spot Rate	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.6502	0.6483
Euro	1.5381	1.5424

Commodities

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Gold	AM	PM
London Gold Fix ($US)	$ 949.75	$950.00

Oil	Open	Change
WTI Crude Future (US)	$66.81	-$0.35 or -0.52%

(07/24/09)