Stocks in Toronto opened slightly weaker on Wednesday, as a drop in the price of gold -- on hopes diplomacy will avert a U.S. military strike on Syria -- was expected to weigh on shares of bullion producers.
The S&P/TSX composite index began Wednesday down 43.30 points to 12,781.18
The Canadian dollar was up 0.05 cents to 96.68 cents U.S.
The federal and Ontario governments said on Tuesday they would sell nearly a quarter of their common shares in General Motors Corp, part of a longer-term plan to shed the stock they acquired in 2009 when they helped the U.S. government bail out the automaker. GM Canada shares faded 2.1% to $36.26.
Among stocks to watch this morning, AGF Management Ltd. hopes to lure Canadian investors back to its mutual fund lineup with a new class of equity funds whose goal is simple: not to lose money. AGF shares took on nine cents to $12.99
BlackBerry cut several dozen jobs from its U.S. sales team on Monday, according to the Wall Street Journal reported. BlackBerry shares gave back 40 cents, or 3.5%, to $10.93.
As the U.S. State Department drags out the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, experts say it is more likely President Barack Obama's final decision on the project to help link Canada's oil sands to U.S. refineries will slip into 2014. The uncertainty weighed on stocks like TransCanada Corp., whose shares fell 37 cents to $45.81.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange fell 0.56 points to 942.29
All but three of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower, weighed mostly by metals and mining and materials, each down 1.2%, while global base metals dived 0.8%.
The three gainers were consumer discretionaries, up 0.3%, financials, up 0.1%, and real-estate, eking up 0.02%.
ON WALLSTREET
After rallying more than 3% over the past five trading days, the Dow Jones Industrial Average moved slightly higher, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq fell modestly.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 44.31 points at the outset at 15,235.40. The S&P 500 index dipped 5.03 points to 1,678.96. The NASDAQ fell 21.54 points to 3,707.48
Traders have pushed markets higher over the past few days as worries about the possibility of U.S.-led military strikes on Syria have receded. It now looks like a diplomatic resolution may be possible after the Syrian government said it would be willing to turn over its chemical weapons.
With little on the economic or corporate calendar, traders aren't expecting much volatility.
Apple shares fell more than 5%, a day after the company unveiled two new iPhones that were met with a lukewarm reception from analysts. Separately, Apple got the OK to run iPhones on China Mobile's exclusive network, in the latest sign that a deal between Apple and China Mobile may be in the works.
Shares of Netflix, which have been rallying lately, briefly hit a new all-time high before pulling back.
Nike's stock also hit an all-time high, one day after gaining admission to the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
Starbucks shares hit an all time high as well.
Investors are gearing up to binge on Verizon's newly issued corporate debt.
In what will likely be the biggest bond offering ever, the telecom giant is expected to announce a $49-billion U.S. bond sale to help fund its purchase of the remaining stake in Verizon Wireless from U.K. telecom Vodafone.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury made slight gains, lowering yields to 2.94% from Tuesday’s 2.96%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up 16 cents to $107.55 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices declined $2.50 at $1,361.50 U.S. an ounce.
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