EnCana and RIM release big news as S&P/TSX index flirts with record high
- EnCana Corp. and Research In Motion were the stories of the morning ahead of the stock-market open Monday.
EnCana (TSX:ECA) announced Sunday it is splitting into two separate Calgary-based companies - one concentrated on natural gas, the other on the oilsands.
The separation is to be completed in early 2009, and the two businesses will share the landmark Calgary office tower currently under construction for EnCana, which has an enterprise value of US$75 billion and employs 6,500 people.
Research In Motion (TSX:RIM) is advancing its position in the smartphone market with its new Bold product, providing wider functions and ease of use to fight off Apple's iPhone and other competitors. The RIM Bold, to be available this summer, boasts "premium materials, inside and out, that radiate elegance with a dramatic presence."
RIM also has arranged a new $150-million software-development fund, in partnership with Thomson Reuters Corp. (TSX:TRI) and the Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY).
The Toronto stock market looks poised to break through its record high set last July.
The S&P/TSX composite index came within less than 20 points of topping the 14,625.76 closing level last Thursday, as record high oil prices boosted the energy sector. The market then pulled back Friday - still up 20 per cent from its January trough as the oil and gas group has gained 40 per cent.
New York stock index futures pointed to a modestly positive open and overseas markets were generally higher as the price of oil eased slightly. Light sweet crude was at US$125.25 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, off 71 cents, after surging about $10 last week.
The Canadian dollar opened at 99.42 cents US, off 0.02 cent from Friday's close.
WestJet (TSX:WJA) is following the lead of Air Canada and various American carriers by adding fuel surcharges on all flights. WestJet said its charges will boost ticket prices by between $20 and $45, amid "unrelenting and unprecedented increases in the cost of fuel over the last year."
In other Canadian corporate news, Home Capital Group Inc. (TSX: HCG) booked a 19 per cent rise in first-quarter profit on solid growth in its mortgage and credit-card lending. Net income was $25.2 million or 72 cents per share, up from $21.2 million or 61 cents per share in the first three months of last year, despite a $2.1-million after-tax loss in the latest quarter on Quebecor World Inc. preferred shares.
Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.6 per cent. The FTSE 100 was up 0.6 per cent near midday in London. The German DAX was also up 0.6 per cent while the Paris CAC-40 advanced 0.75 per cent.
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