Markets in Canada’s largest centre acquired some traction as the morning came to a close on Tuesday, as worries about increasing tensions in the Middle East were offset by gains in the natural resource sectors.
The S&P/TSX composite index was in the green 18.11 points to greet noon at 15,147.11, after a tumble of more than 130 points Monday.
The Canadian dollar turned negative 0.21 cents to 90.35 cents U.S.
Shares of energy producers climbed, with Canadian Natural Resources rising 1.1% to $44.02 and Suncor Energy gaining 0.4% to $41.52.
The gold-mining sector added strength as Goldcorp advanced 0.7% to $25.92, and Barrick Gold climbed 0.4% to $17.06.
Financials slipped slightly. Bank of Montreal shed 0.2% to $84.05.
Interest rates may have to be about one-and-a-half percentage points lower than they have been historically in order for the Canadian economy to operate at full capacity, the Bank of Canada said on Monday.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported this morning that retail sales paused in July, edging down 0.1% to $42.5 billion, this, after six straight monthly gains.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slid 2.40 points to 925.69.
Nine of the 14 Toronto subgroups had turned positive by noon hour, with gold up 1.7%, materials ahead 1.3%, and energy prevailing 0.8%.
The five laggards were weighed mostly by industrials, down 0.5%, information technology, sliding 0.4%, and real-estate, off 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock investors were diffident on Tuesday, sending the main benchmarks lower as investors sought havens such as gold and Treasurys.
The Dow Jones Industrials was down 48.74 points by noon ET to 17,123.94
The S&P 500 dipped 4.58 points to 1,989.71. The NASDAQ faltered 0.98 points to 4,526.71.
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. fell 1.8% after a more than 4% drop in the U.S. regular session on Monday.
CF Industries Holdings Inc. shares rose 3.43% after it confirmed merger talks with Norwegian chemical company Yara International.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. will release its second-quarter results after the close of markets.
Google Inc. shares inched lower after the European Union’s competition chief said the search company must improve its proposed settlement over antitrust concerns or face formal charges.
In economic data, U.S. home prices inched up in July, but growth slowed down, according to data released Tuesday.
Perhaps the biggest drag on the market mood was weak European data, which overshadowed better-than-expected Chinese manufacturing numbers. U.S. airstrikes in Syria on Monday evening against extremist fighters, known as the Islamic State, reminded traders of heightened geopolitical risks.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained ground, lowering yields to 2.55% from Monday’s 2.57%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices recovered 91 cents to $91.78 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices moved up $5.70 to $1,223.60 U.S. an ounce.
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