(fxcue news) - Higher crude oil prices and slightly positive European stocks point to a marginally higher start for the Canadian market Friday morning. However, U.S. non-farm payroll data, due before the opening bell, holds the key for the market, as the numbers could offer some clues about the likely move of the Federal Reserve with regard to the size of its next interest rate cut. On the Canadian economic front, the Ivey Business School will release the Ivey PMI score for the month of September at 10 AM ET. The Ivey Purchasing Managers Index in Canada dropped sharply to 48.2 in August 2024 from 57.6 in July, significantly missing the forecast of 55.5 and hitting its lowest level since December 2020. Coeur Mining, Inc. (NYSE: CDE) and SilverCrest Metals Inc. (SIL.TO) entered Friday into a definitive agreement whereby a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coeur will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of SilverCrest pursuant to a court-approved plan of arrangement. The Canadian market ended weak on Thursday, weighed down by losses in real estate, materials and utilities sectors. However, the downside was just marginal thanks to strong and sustained buying at several counters in the energy sector. Data showing a contraction in Canada's services sector for the third consecutive month, and conerns about rising tensions in the Middle East hurt sentiment. The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 33.05 points or 0.14% at 23,968.50, after scaling a low of 23,823.96 and a high of 23,982.24 intraday. Data from S&P Global said the Canada Composite PMI dropped to 47.0 in September, from 47.8 in August, marking a deeper contraction in private sector activity for the fourth consecutive month. The S&P Global Canada Services PMI fell to 46.4 in September, down from 47.8 in August, and marking the fourth consecutive month of decline. Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday as Middle East tensions persisted, and investors looked ahead to the all-important U.S. jobs report later in the day that could decide the path of U.S. interest rates. The dollar hovered near a six-week high in Asian trading and gold traded near record levels while oil prices steadied, after having surged 5 percent the previous day as U.S. President Joe Biden said the U.S. was discussing possible strikes by Israel on Iran's oil industry. The Shanghai market remained closed for a week-long holiday. European stocks are modestly higher even as investors continue to make cautious moves amid concerns about a wider Middle East conflict and ahead of the all-important U.S. jobs report that could shed additional light the health of the economy and rate outlook. In commodities, West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures are up $1.17 or 1.6% at $74.88 a barrel. Gold futures are gaining $3.00 or 0.11% at $2,682.20 an ounce, while Silver futures are down $0.044 or 0.14% at $32.420 an ounce.