The Toronto stock market retreated from solid gains Wednesday afternoon on rising oil and gold prices and amid word that the U.S. Federal Reserve is keeping its key interest rate near zero as the recovery continues to unfold slower than hoped.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index dipped 2.76 points to wrap up the session at 13,060.56
The Canadian dollar slid 0.25 cents to 102.71 cents U.S.
The TSX surged 206 points Tuesday ahead of the Greek confidence vote but the main index has dropped more than 2% for the past three straight weeks.
On Wednesday, the gold sector rose as nervous investors pushed the August bullion contract in New York up for a seventh session. Barrick Gold Corp. rose 72 cents to $43.68 and Goldcorp Inc. gained $1.05 to $48.22.
Oil prices advanced after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a decline of 1.7 million barrels in U.S. crude supplies last week. The decline was larger than the 81,000-barrel fall reported by the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday.
Canadian Natural Resources climbed four cents to $39.19 while Suncor Energy advanced 16 cents to $37.58.
The base metals sector rose as the July copper contract on the Nymex was down two cents at $4.07 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources lost $1.26 to $44.21 while HudBay Minerals rose 21 cents to $13.25.
The industrials sector was the biggest decliner with Bombardier Inc. off 34 cents at $6.69.
AltaGas Ltd. has received approval to begin construction on the $235-million Gordondale gas processing facility 100 kilometres northwest of Grande Prairie, Alta. Its shares were up 28 cents at $25.94.
AGF Management Ltd. said higher investment management revenue helped it to a gain of almost 19% in second-quarter net profits to $32.7 million. The Toronto-based global wealth management company also hiked its quarterly dividend by almost 4%. AGF shares were seven cents lower at $18.55.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 23.84 points to 1,935.90 while the Nasdaq Canada index fell 0.81 points to 539.18
In Toronto, eight of the 14 subgroups were higher. Health-care picked up 1.7%, gold gained 1.5%, and consumer staples increased 0.7%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed mostly by industrials, down 1.3%, global base metals and their cousins in metals and mining, each off 0.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks drifted between small gains and losses Wednesday as investors digested the latest pronouncements from the Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 80.34 points to 12,109.70.
The S&P 500 demurred 8.38 points to 1,287.14. The Nasdaq Composite was 18.07 points to the bad, at 2,669.19.
Shares of Boeing fell more 1.8%, making it the worst performing Dow stock. But gains in shares of JPMorgan and American Express helped support the blue-chip index.
Shares of Adobe Systems slumped more than 5%. The software maker posted a 54% jump in second-quarter profit after the market close Tuesday, but issued a revenue outlook that fell short of expectations.
Carmax reported first-quarter earnings that widely beat expectations, sending shares of the company nearly 8% higher.
Royal Phillips Electronics warned that second-quarter profit would drop sharply and miss expectations. U.S.-listed shares of the electronics maker tumbled 11%.
FedEx reported earnings and sales that topped forecasts, and hiked its outlook. That sent shares of the shipping company up 3%. Shares of rival UPS edged up more than 1%.
JPMorgan, which paid $153 million U.S. Tuesday to settle charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission, was up over 1%.
Bed Bath & Beyond will report quarterly results after the market close Wednesday. The home decor retailer is expected to report earnings of 62 cents U.S. a share.
Video streaming website Hulu LLC is considering putting itself up for sale, according to news reports that cite people familiar with the situation.
Speaking of things economic, in a widely expected move, the Fed held its benchmark interest rate near 0%, saying the economic recovery has been weaker than expected.
Echoing past statements, the Fed said economic growth remains weak enough to justify "exceptionally low" interest rates for an "extended period" of time.
The central bank also confirmed that its $600-billion U.S. stimulus program will end next week, as scheduled. It will continue to use interest earned on its $2.6-trillion U.S. portfolio of securities to buy long-term Treasuries.
Separately, the Fed issued an update to its economic projections. The bankers lowered their target for economic growth and raised their unemployment rate projections for this year.
In his post-statement press conference, Bernanke said he believes the recent slowdown is due to temporary factors such as supply disruptions from the earthquake in Japan.
But he acknowledged that more long-term problems may be behind the economic weakness this year.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury slumped soon before Wednesday’s closing bell, raising yields back to Tuesday’s 2.99%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices moved ahead 68 cents to $94.85 U.S. a barrel
Gold futures for August delivery added $8 to $1,554.40 U.S. an ounce.
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