North American stock markets were mixed Wednesday as the focus remained on the Syrian crisis amid little news on the economic calendar.
The S&P/TSX composite index finished Wednesday up 0.94 points to 12,825.42, after spending much of the day in negative territory
The Canadian dollar was up 0.30 cents to 96.93 cents U.S.
About half of the sectors on the Toronto Stock Exchange were down with small losses. The info tech sector declined as BlackBerry shares fell 59 cents, or 5.2%, to $10.74. The stock has been turbulent over the last week on rumours of a possible sale of the smartphone maker.
Meanwhile, the gold sector advanced as Barrick Gold gained 14 cents to $19.20, Goldcorp added 44 cents to $28.60 and Kinross Gold advanced two cents to $5.55
December copper was unchanged at $3.26 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources shares erased four cents to $29.47.
Geopolitical uncertainty remained the main driver in oil markets in particular, which have been falling amid easing of tensions surrounding Syria. Although Syria isn't a major producer, political uncertainty in the oil-rich Mideast tends to push up crude prices.
The October crude contract was up, and among energy plays, Imperial Oil stepped back six cents to $44.51, while Suncor added 26 cents to $36.68.
In corporate news, discount retailer Dollarama beat analyst expectations as its second-quarter profit surged 20% to $59.8 million despite slightly lower margins as a result of expansion.
The Montreal-based retailer, which has more than 800 stores focused on items sold for between $1 and $3 each, earned 82 cents per share for the period ended Aug. 4, up from 66 cents per diluted share a year ago. Sales increased 16% to $511.3 million.
Estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters called for $503.7 million of revenue and 79 cents per share of net income, or 78 cents per share on an adjusted basis. Its shares jumped $5.20, or 7%, to $79.30.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange nicked higher 1.38 points to close Wednesday at 944.23
In all, eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups gained strength, led by consumer discretionaries and global base metals, each progressing 0.6%, while metals and mining stocks gained 0.4%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed mostly by telecoms, down 0.6%, information technology, down 0.5%, and consumer staples, down 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
After rallying more than 3% over the past five trading days, the S&P 500 moved slightly higher, while the NASDAQ fell modestly and the Dow Jones Industrials moved skyward.
The Dow gained 135.54 points to 15,326.60, but that was mainly because shares of IBM, the most heavily weighted stock in the average, rose more than 2%.
The S&P 500 index inched ahead 5.14 points to 1,689.13. The NASDAQ fell 4.01 points to 3,725.01
Meantime, investors flocked to Verizon's newly issued corporate debt.
The telecom giant announced a record $49-billion U.S. bond sale to help fund its purchase of the remaining stake in Verizon Wireless from U.K. telecom Vodafone.
The Verizon bond sale is the latest sign that major corporations are anxiously anticipating a rise in long-term interest rates and are rushing to sell debt before a potential pullback on bond buying by the Federal Reserve. The Fed will meet next week and could discuss plans to taper the bank's bond buying program.
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.
Facebook rallied more than 3% and hit an all-time high of $45.09 U.S.
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 it was announced that it would be added to the Dow next week. Goldman Sachs and Visa will also be added to the Dow.
News Corp shares rallied after investment firm Southeastern Asset Management disclosed it had a 12% stake in the media company.
Starbucks shares hit an all-time high as well.
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.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury moved back up, lowering yields to 2.92% from Tuesday’s 2.96%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up 31 cents to $107.70 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices declined 40 cents at $1,363.60 U.S. an ounce.
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