Stocks in Toronto slipped in morning trade on Wednesday, as losses for its heavyweight financial and natural resource sectors offset a
sharp boost in BlackBerry Ltd shares after it won an arbitration ruling against chipmaker Qualcomm Inc.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index faded 27.7 points to open Wednesday at 15,699.41
The Canadian dollar regrouped 0.12 cents at 75.15 cents U.S.
BlackBerry – once known as Research in Motion -- surged $1.75, or 17%, to $12.02, its highest level since January 2016, after Qualcomm was ordered to repay it $814.9 million in royalty payments.
Shaw Communications reported a 13.3% rise in quarterly revenue, driven by the addition of more wireless customers. Shaw gained $1.10, or 4%, to $28.55.
TD Securities raised the rating on Capstone Mining to buy from hold. Capstone shares were unchanged at $1.17.
National Bank Financial cut the target price on TFI International to $37.00 from $40.00. TFI shares poked up two cents to $30.04.
The Bank of Canada did as expected Wednesday, holding rates at 0.5%, where rates have stayed since the bank cut twice in 2015.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange took on 1.63 points to 830.67
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower, as materials sank 0.5%, while financials and industrials each faltered 0.3%
The five gainers were led by information technology, surging 1.5%, consumer discretionaries better by 0.4%, and health-care, up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities slipped on Wednesday as investors assessed the geopolitical landscape and braced for the start of earnings season.
The Dow Jones Industrials regressed 31.56 points to start trading at 20,619.74, with Boeing contributing the most losses. The index also fell below its 50-day moving average, a level it has not under since Nov. 7.
The S&P 500 lost 3.18 points to 2,350.60, with materials and industrials leading decliners. The index was also on track to close below its 50-day moving average for the first time since Nov. 8.
The NASDAQ Composite dipped 7.45 points to 5,859.32
JPMorgan, Wells Fargo and Citigroup are scheduled to report Thursday morning. Delta Air Lines, meanwhile, posted better-than-expected results, sending its stock higher in the pre-market.
U.S. State Secretary Rex Tillerson visited Moscow on Wednesday and received a barrage of criticism from several Russian officials.
Ahead of a meeting with Tillerson, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that he wanted to know what the real intentions of the U.S. administration are, following its missile strikes in Syria.
Geopolitical tensions have been brewing ahead of a highly anticipated earnings seasons. Media reports say earnings are expected to have grown around 10% in the first quarter. Sales, meanwhile, are expected to have grown the most since 2011.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note gained slightly, dropping yields to 2.29% from Tuesday’s 2.3%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained a penny at $53.41 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices added $2.30 at $1,276.50 U.S. an ounce.
