Equities in Canada’s largest market fell on Thursday as a sharp jump in U.S. jobless claims in January raised fears of further economic pain, while delays in rollouts of coronavirus vaccines also weighed on sentiment.
The S&P/TSX Composite slid 47.25 points to begin Thursday at 18,327.53.
The Canadian dollar inched up 0.02 cents to 78.76 cents U.S.
Barrick Gold reported a quarterly adjusted profit on Thursday that more than doubled, helped by a jump in gold prices due to coronavirus-induced economic uncertainty.
Teck Resources on Thursday reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit, powered by a buoyant copper business on higher prices of the metal.
Canadian Tire reported a 13% rise in quarterly revenue on Thursday, helped by strong demand for kitchenware, tools and seasonal products during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada said its new housing price index rose at its fastest pace since October, increasing 0.7% nationally in January.
Canada's COVID-19 vaccination campaign started on the same day in December as the United States, but it now lags dozens of countries, including its southern neighbor, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is feeling the pressure.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange lost 4.84 points to 1,079.51.
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower Wednesday, as gold slumped 2.9%, materials slumbered 2.3%, and health-care fell 2.1%.
The three gainers were energy, up 0.6%, financials, ahead 0.3%, and real-estate, progressing 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks slid on Thursday as investors were discouraged by a worse-than-expected jobless claims reading as well as a gloomy forecast from Walmart.
The Dow Jones Industrials crumpled from its all-time high of Wednesday, losing 283.72 points to 31,329.30,
The S&P 500 skidded 38.58 points to 3,892.75.
The NASDAQ Composite tumbled 192.58 points, or 1.4%, to 13,772.92, as investors continued to rotate out of high-flying tech.
Walmart shares dropped nearly 6% after its fourth-quarter earnings fell short of Wall Street estimates. The big box retailer also sees sales growth slowing this year as the pandemic momentum ebbs.
Shares of Apple fell another 1.3%. Apple shares are down 4.6% so far this week as investors take some profits in the Big Tech stocks that have led the market back to a record. Tesla dipped 1.2%, bringing week-to-date losses to 3.3%.
Corporate America is wrapping up a strong earnings season and policymakers in Washington bargain on another round of stimulus. One expert said that finalizing the stimulus deal could provide another move higher for the markets even if it is somewhat priced in already.
First-time filings for unemployment insurance totaled 861,000 last week, the highest level in a month and above the Dow Jones estimate of 773,000, the U.S. Labor Department reported Thursday.
The Congressional hearings on the GameStop saga are also set to begin on Thursday, with leaders of Melvin Capital and Robinhood joining Reddit trader Keith Gill at the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Financial Services.
Prices for 10-Year Treasurys sagged, building yields to 1.32% from Wednesday’s 1.29%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices inched up four cents to $61.18 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices added 30 cents to $1,773.10
