By Leonard Zehr

Investors are keying on the week’s most important piece of economic data, the U.S. consumer price index for May, due for release before the bell Friday, to set the day’s direction in equities.

“If the news from CPI should be favourable then there’s a good chance that might give the stock market a boost,” Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners, told Reuters. “Corporate news this morning seems favourable, but all the market’s action is predicated on the CPI, which I think might not be as pleasant as the Street is expecting.”

Technology shares will be in the spotlight Friday after Goldman Sachs upgraded Intel Corp., the world’s largest chip maker, to “buy” from “neutral” and raised the target price. In another development, Dell Inc. delayed filing its first-quarter financial report.

Canadian investors will be watching developments around Western Oil Sands Inc.

France’s La Lettre de L’Expansion says Total SA, Europe’s third-largest oil company, has hired Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. as an adviser on a possible bid for Western Oil, which holds a 20 per cent interest in the Athabasca oil sands project.

Total declined comment on the report. The newsletter also cited Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Texaco Inc. as being interested in Western Oil, which rose $1.08 or 3 per cent to $35.50 on the TSX Thursday, giving the company a market value of $5.6-billion.

Last February, Western Oil indicated that advisers Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and TD Securities Inc. would be contacting third parties on a possible merger or acquisition or sale of assets.

Lower commodity prices overseas could weigh heavily on Canadian markets Friday.

Crude oil prices are retreating after two days of gains sparked by Mideast tensions and worries of low fuel supplies from U.S. refiners. Some analysts and traders are now speculating that recent gains weren’t justified.

Gold also drifted lower in Europe on the back of strength in the U.S. dollar but trading was subdued ahead of the release of the key U.S. inflation data.

And prices of industrial metals slipped in early LME trading after a threatened mine strike in Mexico was called off, and stocks of unused copper rose in China. Aluminum, nickel and lead prices also softened.

Leonard Zehr:
Leonard Zehr has been a reporter, Money & Markets investment editor and associate managing editor of the Report on Business since 1988. He began his writing career with Dow Jones newservice and Wall Street Journal in 1971.

Copyright Fund China 2008.

You Might Like: