Canada's main stock index moved lower midday Tuesday, boosted by gold miners after prices of the yellow metal climbed as a weakening dollar drove investors holding other currencies to the safe-haven asset.
The TSX turned from the initial positive readings of the morning and dumped 74.14 points to greet noon Tuesday at 16,581.98.
The Canadian dollar gained 0.24 cents to 75.87 cents U.S.
A group of Cirque du Soleil creditors is the front-runner to win control of the financially strapped entertainment group ahead of a Tuesday deadline for bids
Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau resigned on Monday amid friction with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over spending policies and after coming under fire for his ties to a charity tapped to run a student grant program.
His replacement will be former Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, the country’s first female finance minister.
Canadian warehouse robotics company Attabotics on Tuesday said it raised $50 million in a funding round led by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board.
The largest percentage gainers on the TSX were Seven Generations Energy, up 28 cents, or 6.1%, to $4.86, and First Quantum Minerals, better by 32 cents, or 2.6%, to $12.72.
Corus Entertainment fell 14 cents, or 4.4%, the most on the TSX, to $3.02. The second-biggest decliner was engineering and construction company SNC-Lavalin Group, down 45 cents, or 1.8%, to $24.30.
Canada refuses to release emails with U.S. about the arrest of Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou as she sought more confidential documents relating to her 2018 detention.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange came off its highs of the morning, but remained 1.05 points above the surface to 751.92.
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups had moved into the red by lunch hour, with health-care sliding 1.8%, gold dulling 1.6%, and materials, off 0.9%.
The lone stalwart was in the communications, in the green but 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
The S&P 500 gave back its earlier gains on Tuesday after briefly breaking above an all-time high that was set before the coronavirus pandemic sent the broader market index tumbling.
The Dow Jones Industrials dipped 29.08 points to 27,815.83, as Home Depot and Walmart both dipped.
The S&P 500 eased forward 5.97 points to 3,387.96, after flirting with all-time peaks.
The NASDAQ added to Monday’s all-time high, gaining 49.89 points to 11,179.61.
Amazon shares outperformed, rising nearly 3%. Netflix and Alphabet both gained more than 0.8%. Consumer discretionary was the best-performing sector in the S&P 500, rising more than 1%.
Home Depot said sales last quarter jumped 23% as consumers stuck in their homes increased do-it-yourself projects. Earnings and sales exceeded Wall Street expectations.
Walmart’s earnings and revenue topped Wall Street estimates last quarter as same-store sales increased by 9.3%. E-commerce sales nearly doubled.
Earlier this year, the S&P 500 tumbled more than 30% from its February record as the coronavirus pandemic sent profit expectations and economic activity tanking. However, the benchmark index for the U.S. stock market did not stay down for long.
The market’s scorching rally back into record territory also came on the heels of unprecedented fiscal and monetary stimulus. The Federal Reserve slashed the overnight U.S. rate to zero as the pandemic first hit and launched an open-ended quantitative easing program.
Lawmakers, meanwhile, pushed through trillions of dollars worth in unemployment assistance and direct payments to Americans, among other benefits.
Elsewhere on the macroeconomic front, U.S. housing starts for July totaled 1.496 million, easily topping an estimate of 1.24 million.
Prices for the 10-Year Treasury gained, lowering yields to 0.66% from Monday’s 0.69%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions
Oil prices ditched 25 cents at $42.64 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices added $7.70 to $2,006.40 U.S. an ounce.
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