The Toronto stock market fell more than three digits Thursday amid a slew of earnings and corporate announcements in Canada, while attention in the U.S. turned towards next week's significant Federal Reserve policy meeting.
The S&P/TSX composite index ended Thursday off 124.37 points, or nearly 1%, to 12,701.05
The Canadian dollar was down 0.03 cents to 96.88 cents U.S.
The likelihood that the Fed will start to reduce its stimulus program has shaken markets in recent weeks after the U.S. central bank indicated it will start to wind down its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases on signs of an improved economy.
The Toronto stock exchange was pulled down early in the day amid steep declines in the gold, materials and metal and mining sectors. The gold sector plummeted, as shares in Barrick Gold fell 5.3%, or $1.02, to $18.18.
On the TSX, the metals and mining sector was down, as Teck Resources saw its stock go down by 3.5%, or $1.04, to $28.43. December copper dipped five cents to $3.21 U.S. a pound.
Meanwhile, the energy sector suffered as Imperial Oil dropped 18 cents to $44.33, while Suncor Energy surged 55 cents to $37.23
In corporate news, Rogers Communications said it has appointed the CEO of Vodafone U.K. to succeed its outgoing president and CEO. Guy Laurence, 52, will become top executive of Toronto-based Rogers in December.
He is replacing Nadir Mohamed, who had previously announced his intention to retire as CEO of the wireless, cable and media company. Rogers shares were down 1.2%, or 50 cents, to $42.95 following the announcement.
Hudson's Bay Co. reported improved overall profit and sales from continuing operations in the second quarter but its Lord & Taylor stores in the United States showed the lingering effects of weak market conditions.
Net earnings from continuing operations rose to $3.9 million or three cents per share in the quarter ending Aug. 4, compared with a loss of two cents per share or $2 million in the second quarter of 2012. The earnings had little effect on the stock, which fell a penny to $17.04.
Shares in travel company Transat A.T. Inc. rose 6%, or 56 cents, to $9.90 after reporting record results for the third quarter on higher transatlantic selling prices, reduced capacity and cost-cutting initiatives. The Montreal-based company's net income attributable to shareholders exceeded expectations, more than quadrupling to $41.1 million from $9.4 million a year earlier.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada reported this morning that its new housing price index rose 0.2% in July, following an identical increase the previous month.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dropped 3.84 points to close at 940.39
All 14 Toronto subgroups finished the session in the red, with gold tumbling 5%, materials 3.4%, and metals and mining 2.9%.
ON WALLSTREET
The September rally is losing some steam after recent gains pushed major stock indexes close to record levels.
The Dow Jones Industrials closed the day down 25.96 points to 15,300.60.
The S&P 500 index dipped 5.71 points to 1,683.42. The NASDAQ fell 9.04 points to 3,715.97
Prior to Thursday's dip, the S&P 500 had enjoyed a seven-day rally that had lifted the broad index within 1.2% of its all-time high. Though the Dow slipped, it remains just 2% from its record high, while the NASDAQ continues to trade near 13-year highs.
Investors are finding little reason to make any big bets as they look ahead to next week's Federal Reserve meeting. The Fed may decide to cut back on its quantitative easing program at that meeting.
Yoga-wear producer lululemon announced a jump in quarterly sales and profit, but shares slumped as the company lowered its guidance for the year.
Shares in Men's Wearhouse sank after the company reported disappointing quarterly earnings on Wednesday.
On the bright side, shares of grocery chain Kroger moved higher on rising earnings and better-than-expected sales.
Disney shares moved higher after the company's CEO Jay Rasulo announced that the media giant will buy back between $6 billion and $8 billion U.S. worth of stock in fiscal 2014. That's up from its typical $4 billion annual buyback in recent years.
Pandora's stock jumped after the online radio company named former aQuantive chief and Microsoft executive Brian McAndrews as its new CEO. Investors seemed to be hopeful about the new chief, and traders were eager to weigh in.
Facebook shares touched a fresh all-time high Thursday before slipping into the red. A day earlier, Facebook topped $45 U.S. for the first time since its first day of turbulent trading on May 18, 2012. Speaking at the TechCrunch Disrupt Wednesday evening, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company is better off for having gone through its rocky IPO.
Shares of Apple rose a day after billionaire investor Carl Icahn said he boosted his stake in the company. Apple's shares had tumbled more than 5% Wednesday after the tech giant introduced two new iPhones.
Yahoo shares moved higher, rising above $30 U.S. per share, a day after Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer touted that the company just passed 800 million monthly users. That's a traffic increase of 20% since she took the helm in July 2012.
But Netflix shares sank after analysts at Morgan Stanley and BTIG downgraded the stock amid worries about the company's valuation. Shares of Netflix have rallied more than 200% in 2013, and are trading at more than 90 times 2014 earnings forecasts.
On the economic front, the government's weekly report showed that first-time claims for unemployment benefits dropped sharply to 292,000 -- their lowest level since early 2006. But the U.S. Labor Department noted that two states did not report complete data last week, which skewed the total figure.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury moved up slightly, lowering yields to 2.91% from Wednesday’s 2.92%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.07 to $108.63 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices slumped $28.50 at $1,324.50 U.S. an ounce.
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