Canada's main stock index was flat on Monday, after closing at a record high in the previous session, as gains in energy shares were offset by declines across other sectors.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index ditched 14.66 points to approach noon at 16,598.15
The Canadian dollar gained 0.16 cents at 74.89 cents U.S.
Top percentage gainers on the TSX were oil and gas producers. Crescent Point Energy jumped 19 cents, or 3.5%, to $5.67, while Baytex Energy rose 13 cents, or 4.6%., to $2.93.
CannTrust Holding fell 25 cents, or 2.7%, among the biggest drops on the TSX, to $9.17, followed by a decline of 48 cents, or 4.9%, in shares of Hudbay Minerals, to $9.23.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange eked up 1.49 points to pause for lunch at 610.70
Eight of the 12 Toronto subgroups remained negative by noon, with consumer discretionary and communications stocks each down 0.9%, and materials off 0.8%
The four gainers were led by energy and health-care, each better by 1.4%, and information technology, nosing up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks traded lower on Monday as Wall Street braced for the busiest week of the earnings season.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average got to within 15.35 points of breakeven to 26,544.19
The S&P 500 eked up 0.97 points to 2,906, due to declines in the materials and real estate sectors
The NASDAQ Composite recovered 2.2 points to 8,000.26
Boeing contributed the most to the Dow’s losses, falling 0.7% after The New York Times reported that workers at the company’s 787 jet plant have complained about shoddy production and bad safety practices.
More than 140 S&P 500 companies are scheduled to release their quarterly results this week, including Coca Cola, Procter & Gamble, United Technologies, Verizon, Twitter, Lockheed Martin and eBay. Facebook, Microsoft and Tesla Motors are also set to report later this week.
Halliburton and Kimberly-Clark are among the companies that reported better-than-expected quarterly results on Monday morning. Halliburton was up 1.6%, and Kimberly-Clark took on 5.3%.
So far, the majority of corporate earnings reports have topped expectations. Data shows 76.5% of the S&P 500 companies that have posted earnings have surpassed analyst estimates. Analysts came into the season with low expectations for the season, forecasting a 4.2% drop in profits.
Wall Street also focused on the oil market as U.S. crude rose 2.2% after the Trump administration said it will not allow the purchase of Iranian oil by some countries. The move could take about one million barrels per day out of the oil market. Energy shares rose along with oil prices.
On the data front, existing home sales for March fell 4.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.21 million. The drop last month came after an 11.2% surge in February.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury were lower, boosting yields to 2.59% from Thursday’s 2.56%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.68 to $65.68 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices nosed up 60 cents to $1,276.60 U.S. an ounce.
