Stocks in Canada’s largest centre edged lower on Wednesday after data showed inflation accelerated in June, while a drop in crude and gold prices also pressured the resource-heavy market.
The TSX declined 66.61 points to 18,871.10.
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.16 cents to 77.52 cents U.S.
Investors have been looking for clues on the central bank's monetary policy path after it unveiled a full-percentage-point interest rate hike last week, becoming the first G7 country to opt for such an aggressive hike in this economic cycle.
Traders see a 92% chance of a 50-basis-point hike in September.
On the economic front, the consumer price index rose 8.1% on a year-over-year basis in June, up from a 7.7% gain in May. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, the CPI increased 0.6% in June.
Also, Statistics Canada says its Industrial Product Price Index declined by 1.1% month-over-month in June and by 14.3% compared with June 2021.
The Raw Materials Price Index edged down 0.1% on a monthly basis in June and increased 32.4% year over year.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange edged up 3.65 points to 609.99
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups began the session pointed downward, as energy lost 1.1%, while utilities and gold were each 0.7% to the bad.
The three gainers were health-care, zooming 3.7%, information technology, clicking 2.4% higher, and consumer discretionary stocks, up 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped on Wednesday, after coming off a sharp rally in the previous session, as traders pored over more corporate earnings.
The 30-stock index lost 93.84 points to 31,733.21.
The S&P 500 dipped 0.34 points to 3,936.35.
The NASDAQ Composite gained 73 points to 11,786.15.
Investors pointed to a Bank of America survey that suggested deteriorating sentiment could potentially set up a buying opportunity in the market. Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar, which recently surged to a 20-year high against the euro, softened, giving the rally more steam.
Netflix climbed 1% after saying it lost only 970,000 subscribers in the second quarter, less than the two million it had previously projected.
The streaming giant’s earnings per share also came in above analyst expectations.
Tesla and United Airlines are slated to post their latest quarterly results after the close.
About 12% of S&P 500 companies have reported earnings thus far. Of those companies, 68% have beaten analyst expectations.
Investors had been awaiting this earnings season as they search for clues on how companies are faring with inflation at levels not seen in 40 years.
On the economic front, a report from the Mortgage Bankers Association pointed to more pain for U.S. consumers as they deal with higher prices and interest rates. Mortgage demand declined more than 6% last week compared with the prior week, dropping to its lowest level in 22 years.
Treasury prices gained ground, dropping yields to 2.99% from Tuesday’s 3.02%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slumped $1.72 to $102.50 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices faltered $4.70 to $1,706.00 U.S. an ounce.
