Equities in Toronto had a struggle making it back to the breakeven point by Tuesday’s closing bell, as losses in real-estate and health-care blotted out gains in energy.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index came off its lows of the day, but was still negative 15.79 points to finish Tuesday at 15,149.57
The Canadian dollar rebounded 0.47 cents to 79.22 cents U.S.
Real-estate issues were bruised somewhat, as Collier’s International Group dove $1.06, or 1.5%, to $69.23, while Brookfield Asset Management shed 18 cents to $49.34.
Among health-care interests, Valeant Pharmaceuticals dropped 30 cents, or 1.4%, to $21.70, while Canopy Growth dipped seven cents to $8.14.
The industrial sector fell short, too, as Canadian Pacific Railways doffed $2.01, or nearly 1%, to $206.29, while Canadian National dipped 11 cents to $105.60.
Energy stocks tried to pick up the slack, as Canadian Natural Resources hiked 43 cents, or 1.2%, to $37.76, while Suncor took on 20 cents to $37.75.
Gold enjoyed a slight resurgence, as Goldcorp picked up 20 cents, or 1.2%, to $16.94, while Kinross Gold gained nine cents, or 1.8%, to $5.15.
Figures released Tuesday by the firm Paynet showed lending to Canadian small businesses picked up in May on stronger activity in the agriculture and consumer sectors, suggesting companies were becoming more willing to invest two years after a slump in oil prices hit the economy.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 1.39 points to 762.56
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were in minus territory on the day, as real-estate and health-care stocks each lost 0.6%, while industrials slumped 0.3%.
The five gainers were led by energy, up 0.5%, while information technology and gold each strengthened 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities closed mixed on Tuesday as investors parsed through more corporate quarterly reports.
The Dow Jones Industrials faded 54.99 points Tuesday to 21,574.73, pressured by shares of Goldman Sachs. The bank's stock contributed the most losses on the Dow after reporting a 40% drop in second-quarter bond trading revenue. That said, the company’s top and bottom-line quarterly results topped Wall Street expectations.
Bank of America also posted quarterly results that beat expectations. Its stock, however, was also pressured by a sharp drop in trading revenue.
The S&P 500 squeezed up 1.47 points to 2,460.61, a record closing high. Information technology led advancers.
The NASDAQ jumped 29.87 points to 6,344.31, a record high. The index also notched an intraday record and an eight-day winning streak, its longest since February 2015.
Netflix shares soared more than 13% to an all-time high. The company said it added 5.2 million total memberships during its second quarter. Facebook also hit a record intraday high.
Wall Street also turned its eyes towards Washington, after two more Republican senators announced Monday that they would oppose the current Republican health care bill.
Following the news, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called for a vote to repeal Obamacare without an immediate replacement, after the latest attempt to overhaul the U.S. health care system lost momentum.
In economic news, import prices fell 0.2% last month, as expected.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note jumped Tuesday, lowering yields to 2.26% from Monday’s 2.31%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions
Oil prices hiked 46 cents to $46.48 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained $7.80 to $1,241.50 U.S. an ounce.
