(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks will look to end a wild week on an upbeat note Friday morning, but early signals are mixed amid increased recession talk and concerns that slumping global demand for commodities will continue to weigh on resource producers.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index slipped 53.88 points to 9,269.97 on Thursday. Shave whipsawed wildly over the past few days, rising nearly 900 points on Tuesday before giving back 650 points on Wednesday. Last Friday, the main index closed at a 3 1/2 year low of 9,065.

The stark reality that the world is on the verge of recession has prevented any positive momentum from carrying over from session to session. Investors have also become fatigued with the historic volatility seen in the markets of late, and are likely to remain on the sideline until stocks calm.

Across the border, US stock futures are pointing to a difficult open after data revealed more distress in the embattled housing sector. Housing starts declined 6.3 percent to 817,000 in September from a downwardly revise 8.1 percent decline in August, dropping to their lowest in 17 years.

Canadian energy stocks may see a bit of upside at the opening bell after the price of oil rose back above $70 a barrel. On the flip side, gold stocks could struggle for a second day as the price of the precious metal further declined by $22.90 to $781.60 an ounce.

Techs may be in play after a mixed bag of results from industry bellwethers. Internet search engine giant Google Inc. (GOOG) delivered better than expected results for the third quarter, but IBM’s (IBM) quarterly revenue fell shy of analysts’ forecast.

Fast food restaurant chain Priszm Income Fund (QSR.UN.TO) announced a decline in third quarter net income. Net income for the quarter was C$3.517 million or C$0.190 per share from C$4.630 million or C$0.281 million in the previous year. Income from continuing operations was C$3.067 million, down from C$4.533 million in the prior year.

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Posted in Categories: Canada, Releases, Stocks, USA.

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