The Toronto Stock Exchange lost more than 300 points today after following the lead of a global stock selloff and digesting underwhelming GDP data out of Statistics Canada.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed Tuesday down 377.22 points, or 2.7%, at 13,481.90.
The Canadian dollar slid 0.4 cents to 75.71 cents U.S.
Metals and mining took the brunt of the beating today, as First Quantum Minerals collapsed 71 cents, or 10.4%, to $6.15, while Sherritt
International reversed 12 cents, or 9.9%, to $1.09.
Energy stocks also took some heat Tuesday, as Penn West Petroleum got bruised 19 cents, or 18.5%, to 84 cents, while Bonavista Energy was punished 61 cents, or 14.9%, to $3.48.
Among financials, IGM Financial backtracked $2.16, or 5.7%, to $35.49, while TMX Group – which owns the Toronto Stock Exchange – gave up $2.54, or 5.2%, to $46.11.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that, after falling for five consecutive months, real gross domestic product rose 0.5% in June. However, there was a second-quarter decline of 0.1% following a 0.2% decrease in the first quarter, technically putting Canada into a recession.
Moreover, the province of Alberta, which has been hammered by falling crude prices, is forecasting a record budget deficit of $5.9 billion this year, a number that could increase to $6.5 billion, Finance Minister Joe Ceci said on Monday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 11.19 points, or 2%, to finish Tuesday trading at 547.97.
All 14 TSX subgroups were off on the day, as metals and mining took it on the chin 7.1%, global base metals stooped 6.5%, and energy faltered 4.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks plummeted Tuesday as continued signs of weakness in China and concerns about the Federal Reserve weighed heavily on investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones industrial average stumbled 469.68 points, or 2.8%, to 16,058.35, with Apple leading all blue chips lower.
The S&P 500 toppled 58.33 points, or 3%, to 1,913.85, with energy plunging 3.7% to lead all 10 sectors lower.
The NASDAQ index went south 140.4 points, or 2.9%, to 4,636.10, wiping out gains for 2015, joining the other averages in the red for the year so far.
In their worst start to September in 13 years, the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 had their worst first trading day of a month since March 2009. The NASDAQ had its worst first trading day of a month since October 2011.
Three U.S. automakers beat their sales estimates for August. The gains contributed to a total seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17.81 million, the highest rate since July 2005, according to Autodata.
Reporting before the bell, Dollar Tree earned an adjusted 67 cents U.S. per share for its latest quarter, beating estimates by five cents.
However, revenue and a same store sales increase of 2.7% were both below analyst estimates.
In U.S. economic news, the August ISM manufacturing index fell to 51.1 from 52.7 the prior month for its weakest read in over two years, according to Reuters.
Construction spending increased 0.7% in July.
Two sets of key Chinese data disappointed traders on Tuesday. The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) edged down to 49.7 in August from 50 in July, while the final Caixin/Markit manufacturing PMI came in at 47.3 in August, the lowest reading since March 2009.
Even more worrying, China's services sector, which has been one of the lone bright spots in the sputtering economy, also showed signs of cooling, a similar business survey said.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained, lowering yields to 2.18% from Monday’s 2.21%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped $4.02 a barrel to $45.18 U.S.
Gold prices gained $7.20 to $1,139.70 U.S. an ounce.
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