The gold sector helped push the Toronto stock market down Wednesday as positive economic data strengthened the U.S. dollar against many currencies and persuaded investors to trim their bullion holdings.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 6.23 points to 13,395.99
The Canadian dollar shed early losses, rising 0.21 of a cent to 100.36 cents U.S.
Gold issues such as Barrick Gold Corp. fell $1.74 to $49.85 while Goldcorp Inc. faded 56 cents to $43.94.
In the oil patch, Suncor Energy was ahead 21 cents to $38.25 while Cenovus Energy lost 71 cents to $32.87.
The base metals sector was slightly lower as copper prices also reversed direction to head higher. The March copper contract on the Nymex gained four cents to $4.40 U.S. a pound. Sherritt International advanced 12 cents to $8.69 while Thompson Creek Metals Co. Inc. fell 22 cents to $14.68.
The telecom sector was the leading advancer as BCE Inc. advanced 21 cents to $35.51.
Shares in auto-parts company Magna International continued to advance sharply, up $2.92 or 5.2% to $58.77 a day after automakers such as General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. reported strong December and year-end sales figures in both Canada and the U.S. Magna shares jumped about 7% on Tuesday.
In corporate news, insurer Manulife Financial Corp. said it made "significant progress" during the fourth quarter in its goal of tamping down the risk in its portfolios by reducing exposure to equity markets thanks to healthier stock markets. Its shares rose 50 cents to $17.77.
Mercator Minerals Ltd. said Tuesday that its Mineral Park copper-molybdenum mine in northwestern Arizona delivered record molybdenum production in December. The Vancouver-headquartered base metals miner said it had 541,563 pounds of production at the mine, closing out a year of "substantially increased production levels" for the company and its shares rose 16 cents to $4.23.
Canadian nuclear medicine specialist Nordion Inc. has extended a contract with one of its primary customers to supply Molybdenum-99, used to make isotopes for nuclear medicine procedures.
Nordion, formerly part of MDS Inc. before it was split up, said its contract with Lantheus Medical Imaging Inc. will now last until Dec. 31, 2013, while the original was in place until July 31, 2011. Nordion shares were off $1.02 to $10.43.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange remained behind Tuesday’s close 12.64 points to 2,262.48, while the Nasdaq Canada index jumped 18.53 points to 773.67.
In Toronto, eight of the 14 subgroups were negative. Health-care stocks lost 1.8%, gold slid 1.7%, and consumer staples were off 0.7%.
The six gainers were led by information technology, up 1.1%, telecoms, ahead 0.7% and metals and mining, up 0.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks climbed Wednesday, with the Dow headed to a fresh two-year high for the third day in a row, as investors started to position themselves for the New Year.
The Dow Jones Industrials clung to gains, finishing up 31.71 points to 11,722.90.
The S&P 500 moved higher by 6.36 points to 1,276.56. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 20.95 points to 2,697.76.
In afternoon trading, 17 of the Dow's 30 components rose, with financials American Express, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase leading the way.
Traders and economists alike are generally more optimistic about the economy in 2011. Earlier Wednesday, two separate reports signaled a brightening jobs picture and stoked optimism that the government's monthly labor report on Friday will also bring good news.
Walt Disney rose 2.1%, hitting a 52-week high, after both Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs released bullish research reports about the media company.
In a letter released by the Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday, insurance giant AIG reported it had received a $3-billion U.S. bid for its Taiwan unit back in November. The news sent AIG shares surging 6.4% Wednesday.
Wireless tech giant Qualcomm agreed to buy chip maker Atheros Communications for $3.1 billion U.S. in cash, or $45 U.S. per share. a 22% premium over Atheros' closing price on Monday. Shares of Atheros rose 1.2%, while Qualcomm's stock rose 1.8%.
Family Dollar Stores tumbled 8.4%, after the discount retailer reporter first-quarter earnings that fell short of analyst expectations. Family Dollar earned 58 cents U.S. per share, below analysts' expectations of 61 cents U.S. per share.
Expedia and Orbitz also posted major gains Wednesday, as did American Airlines' parent AMR Corp. after an AMR executive said he hopes to reach an agreement with the online travel agents to let them resume booking American flights.
The discount airfare websites are in a heated sales dispute withe the carrier after American pulled its fare data to sell flights on its own system.
Expedia shares gained 3.3%, Orbitz Worldwide rose 2.1% and AMR rallied 5.9%.
Economically speaking, outplacement firm Challenger Gray & Christmas reported before the opening bell that planned job cuts fell 59% to 530,000 in 2010, the lowest level in 13 years.
Meanwhile, private sector payrolls soared by 297,000 in December, according to a separate report from payroll processor ADP. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com were expecting the report to show that payrolls increase by 100,000 last month, compared to November's 93,000 rise.
The two reports could set the tone ahead of the Friday's monthly jobs report. Economists expect employers boosted payrolls by 135,000 last month, following a 39,000 increase in November.
Also, a report from the Institute of Supply Management showed that activity in the service sector picked up last month. The index rose to 57.1 in December, topping forecasts and up from 55 in November.
Meanwhile, Republican and Democratic leaders launch the 112th Congress at noon. The new Congress pledges to make job creation its first priority.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dipped sharply, raising the yield to 3.48% from Tuesday’s 3.35%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery garnered 99 cents to $90.37 U.S. a barrel
Gold futures for February delivery fell $5.10 to settle at $1,373.70 U.S. an ounce.
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