A steep decline in the gold sector helped push the Toronto stock market into negative territory Monday.
The S&P/TSX composite index finished only 2.66 points in the red to close Monday at 14,530.91
The Canadian dollar gained 0.12 at 90.70 cents U.S.
Barrick Gold took it on the chin after merger talks between the Canadian company and Newmont Mining broke off. The news came two days before Barrick's annual meeting, where company chairman and industry legend Peter Munk is expected to step down. Barrick shares lost 62 cents, or 3.1%, to $19.12.
The TSX tech sector is flat for the month but Canadian companies joined the U.S. selloff with CGI Group down 23 cents to $37.91.
Corporate earnings will help set the tone on markets this coming week.
In Canada, Imperial Oil, Suncor, Cenovus Energy and Canadian Natural Resources are expected to report results.
The energy sector is the best-performing group on the TSX year to date, up about 15%.
Imperial Oil handed back 25 cents Monday to $52.73, while Suncor shares gained 38 cents to $41.34. Cenovus shares gained eight cents to $32.60 and Canadian Natural Resources shares took on 21 cents to $44.86.
On Monday, Precision Drilling reported first-quarter net earnings of $102 million, or 35 cents per diluted share, up from $93 million, or 33 cents per diluted share, a year ago.
Revenues increased 13% to $672 million, mainly due to higher pricing and drilling activity in Canada, the U.S. and internationally. Its shares slipped 14 cents to $13.70.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange lost 4.01 points to 1,009.58
Eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups were positive by day’s end, led by consumer staples, up 0.9%, while telecoms took on 0.4%, and consumer discretionaries were 0.3% to the good.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed mostly by golds, off 2.2%, metals and mining stocks, down 1.7%, and materials, sliding 1.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
Investors rode the roller coaster Monday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average grew 87.28 points to close at 16,448.74
The S&P 500 regained 6.03 points to 1,869.43, and the NASDAQ composite index fell 1.16 short of breakeven to 4,074.40.
Stocks swooned earlier in the afternoon as heavy selling in the technology sector weighed on the broader market, but the market bounced back heading into the close.
Despite the late-day rebound, many of last year's biggest winners were still considerably lower.
Social media companies were hit particularly hard. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Yelp were all down sharply. So was Twitter, which is due to report its first quarter results Tuesday afternoon.
Weibo, the Chinese social medial company that went public earlier this month, fell nearly 10% and is trading near its IPO price.
Internet radio service Pandora was also one of the worst hit, down over 8% in afternoon trading.
There was heavy selling in shares of companies that many investors consider to be overvalued, while more stable tech companies were back in fashion. Netflix, Amazon and Tesla all fell as investors flocked to dividend payers such as Apple and Microsoft.
Beyond the carnage in momentum stocks, investors were shifting money into stocks that are considered safe havens and selling shares of companies that are more tied to the economic recovery.
Consumer staples and telecommunications companies were among the best performers, while materials and financial services companies were deep in the red.
The market is about to enter the time of year when stocks historically have underperformed. Analyst say many investors are shifting into more defensive stocks as they brace for a slowdown in trading activity, which typically starts in May.
In more upbeat news, takeover talk is swirling through the markets as Pfizer said it has been looking at a $100-billion U.S. bid for AstraZeneca, and General Electric is reportedly attempting to buy Alstom's power turbines business.
The British pound pushed up against the U.S. dollar, trading at its highest level since late 2008, in response to the possibility of a Pfizer takeover of AstraZeneca, noted Kit Juckes at Societe Generale.
Shares in AstraZeneca surged, while Pfizer shares were also edging higher.
Both General Electric and Germany's Siemens are reportedly looking to buy the power divisions of France's Alstom, though French government officials are said to be concerned about a U.S. takeover.
Trading in Alstom shares has been suspended. The company promised to make a statement by Wednesday at the latest. General Electric has made no comment.
Siemens said it has proposed to discuss strategic options with Alstom, but declined further comment.
Bank of America shares fell more than 6% after the Federal Reserve required the bank to resubmit its 2014 capital plan because BofA incorrectly reported data used to calculate its capital levels. BofA said it was suspending plans to hike its dividend and increase its share repurchase program. It's the worst single-day stock drop for BofA since 2012.
On the economic front, the National Association of Realtors said pending home sales, which reflect transactions that have not yet closed, rose in March for the first time in nine months.
In other international news, the White House unveiled new sanctions against Russian officials and businesses in response to the escalating crisis in Ukraine. The sanctions target seven Russian officials and 17 entities, including banks and companies tied to Russia's energy industry.
In a major challenge to Kiev's new leaders, armed rebels aligned with Moscow have captured towns and government buildings across eastern Ukraine and are holding a team of European monitors hostage.
The Russian ruble, which has plunged versus the U.S. dollar recently, regained some ground as the sanctions appeared to be less severe than some had expected.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries recovered lost strength, lowering yields to 2.68% from Friday’s 2.69%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained 34 cents to $100.94 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices ditched $4.40 at $1,296.40 U.S. an ounce.
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