The Toronto stock market was little changed Thursday as indexes held solid gains racked up in a relief rally sparked by a last-minute deal to avert big tax hikes and spending cuts in the United States.
The S&P/TSX composite index eased 9.22 points to approach noon at 12,531.55, off its lows of the morning.
The Canadian dollar gained 0.02 cents to 101.49 cents U.S.
The energy sector shook off early losses to move higher as Canadian Natural Resources gained 39 cents to $29.60 while Talisman Energy rose 12 cents to $11.62.
Industrials also provided lift as Bombardier Inc. ticked four cents higher to $3.89.
Goldcorp Inc. faded 69 cents to $36.26.
The base metals sector was off with March copper down a cent at $3.72 U.S. a pound. Rio Alto Mining declined eight cents to $5.22.
Tech stocks also stalled as Research In Motion Ltd. moved down 10 cents to $11.47.
In corporate news, Brookfield Asset Management and New York-based fund manager Pershing Square have resolved a dispute over General Growth Properties, owner-operator of regional shopping malls in 41 states.
Brookfield is the largest shareholder of GGP and Pershing controlled the second-largest block when the dispute between the fund managers arose last summer.
Regulatory documents filed Thursday show Pershing has dropped efforts to have General Growth sold and Brookfield has agreed to buy GGP warrants held by Pershing. Brookfield shares dipped 15 cents to $36.45.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange shed 2.78 points to 1,237.06
Of the 14 Toronto subgroups, eight remained negative by noon, weighed down mostly by real-estate issues, off 0.7%, while gold and materials slid 0.5% each.
The half-dozen gainers were led by energy, up 0.3%, while industrials and financials grew 0.2% each.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks were mixed Thursday, a day after logging big gains thanks to the passage of a fiscal cliff deal in Washington.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average shaved off 0.88 points to 13,411.70 – again, off its lows of the morning -- after yesterday’s 300-point-plus gain.
The S&P 500 moved ahead 1.47 points to 1,463.89. The Nasdaq Composite regained 3.20 points to 3,115.46
Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase were among the biggest losers on the Dow, while Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo were also lower.
In corporate news, Family Dollar shares plunged after the discount retailer reported earnings that missed forecasts and issued a weak outlook.
Shares of Gap moved up slightly, after the retailer reported stronger-than-expected same store sales and announced a new $1-billion U.S. stock buyback.
Limited shares slid after the owner of Victoria's Secret said same store sales fell short of forecasts.
Shares of spam maker Hormel rallied after the company announced it was paying $700 million U.S. to acquire the Skippy brand from Unilever
Shares of SunPower spiked after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway invested between $2 billion and $2.5 billion U.S. in two of the solar company's projects.
Economically speaking, investors got a fresh look at the labour market, with the government's weekly report on initial jobless claims and the monthly report on private sector jobs from payroll processor ADP.
The private sector added 215,000 jobs in December, according to ADP. And the government reported first-time jobless claims rose 10,000 to 372,000 in the latest week.
The two jobs reports serve as a prelude to the government's closely watched monthly labour report, due Friday morning. Economists expect job growth continued at a modest pace in December, with employers adding 150,000 jobs.
In November, employers added 146,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7% as workers dropped out of the labour force.
Prices on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note lost ground, boosting yields to 1.86% from Wednesday’s 1.83% Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped two cents to $93.10 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices fell $9.80 to $1,679.20 U.S. an ounce.
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