Stocks in Toronto slipped Tuesday afternoon, led by losses in oil companies as crude prices fell. Precious metal stocks also took a hit as the price of gold pulled back on easing geopolitical tensions over North Korea.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index was off 17.05 points at 15,102.86.
The September crude contract was down 30 cents to $47.29 US per barrel
The December gold contract shed $14 to $1,276 an ounce.
On the economic front , data released on Tuesday showed lending to Canadian small businesses rose for a fifth straight month in June on stronger activity in construction and other major industries.
The Canadian Real Estate Association says the national average price for homes sold in July fell compared with a year ago, the first year-over-year drop since February 2013.
The association says the average price for a home sold last month was $478,696, down 0.3 per cent from July 2016, due to fewer sales in Toronto and Vancouver compared with last year.
In corporate news -- Husky Energy will acquire the Superior Refinery, a 50,000 barrel per day permitted capacity facility located in Superior, Wisconsin from Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. for $435 million US in cash.
The Canadian dollar was trading lower at 78.4 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange was up 3.48 points to 768.12.
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive this afternoon, with health-care adding 0.83%, utilities up 0.52% and consumer staples ahead 0.20%.
On the downside, base metals were off 0.71%, gold shed 0.69% and materials dipped 0.57%.
ON WALLSTREET
US stocks were in the red Tuesday afternoon amid a mixed bag of earnings even as North Korea worries retreated for a second day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 3 points to 21,989, while the S&P 500 index was off 1.5 point at 2,464 and the Nasdaq Composite Index shed 6 points, or 0.1%, at 6,334.
In earnings, Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP) slumped 15% after falling short of earnings estimates over its recent quarter. Adjusted profit of $1.58 a share fell short of an estimated $1.65. Revenue was flat at $2.264 billion, in-line with estimates. Same-store sales were also flat. For the full year, the retailer anticipates same-store sales to fall between 1% and 3%.
Home Depot Inc. (HD) reported quarterly earnings that exceeded estimates and comparable-store sales growing more than anticipated. Profit rose to $2.25 a share from $1.97 a year earlier, 4 cents higher than targeted. Revenue of $28.11 billion topped estimates of $27.83 billion. Comparable-store sales increased 6.3%, higher than an expected 4.9% gain.
Retail sales in July rose at a faster pace than anticipated, reaching a seven-month high in a positive sign that consumers were spending in the first month of the third quarter. Sales increased by 0.6%, according to the Census Bureau, higher than an expected rise of 0.4%. Core retail sales rose by 0.5%.
Manufacturing activity in the New York region reached to a three-year high in August. The Empire State Manufacturing Index increased by 15 points to 25.2, far better than an anticipated unchanged level of 9.8. Any level above zero suggests growth.
Business inventories increased in June at a faster pace than anticipated. The Census Bureau reported a 0.5% rise in manufacturers' and trade inventories in June, higher than a 0.4% expected gain. Sales climbed 0.3%.
The National Association of Home Builders' housing market index unexpectedly improved in August. The measure increased by 4 points to a level of 68. Homebuilder sentiment had reached an eight-month low in July. Analysts anticipated a retreat to 65.
The 10-year benchmark Treasury note was up firmly at 2.26% as prices fell. Bond prices move inversely to yields.
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