Canada's main stock index recovered some strength by midday Wednesday, as gains in financial shares were offset by losses in the energy sector.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index had gained 19.27 points to reach noon Wednesday at 16,305.57
The Canadian dollar was unchanged at 76.57 cents U.S.
The gains in financials were led by a rise of $1.70, or 3.2%, in shares of Thomson Reuters, to $55.23, which reported a 2% rise in quarterly revenue.
The top advancer on the TSX was Nuvista Energy, which jumped 22 cents, or 2.6%, to $8.86, after posting higher quarterly production.
The second-biggest percentage gainer was Altus Group, which rose $3.09, or 10.8%, to $31.59, on higher quarterly revenue.
Magna International fell $5.87, or 7.6%, to $71.01, to become the top laggard on the TSX after lowering its full-year production forecast for North America.
The second-biggest decliner was Spin Master Corp, down $3.50, or 6.4%, to $51.55, after announcing a secondary offering.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that Canadian municipalities issued $8.1 billion worth of building permits, down 2.3% from the previous month.
The agency attributes the decline to lower construction intentions for residential buildings, following a strong May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 2.2 points Wednesday to 698.66
All but three of the 12 subgroups were higher by noon, led by gains in health-care, ahead 2.1%, real-estate, up 0.7%, and financials, up 0.5%.
The three laggards proved to be consumer discretionary stocks, down 1.8%, energy, off 0.7%, and utilities, down 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks traded lower on Wednesday after China unveiled new tariffs on U.S. goods. Disney shares also contributed to the broader market's decline.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average remained negative 20.64 points to 25,608.27, with Disney as the biggest laggard.
The S&P 500 gained 1.59 points to 2,860.04, with energy underperforming.
The NASDAQ recovered 8.91 points to 7,892.58
The S&P 500 closed Tuesday's session just 0.5% from a record high. If the index breaks above 2,872.87, it would notch its first all-time high since Jan. 26. The NASDAQ was also less than 1% away from a record while the Dow remained 3.7% below its all-time high through Tuesday's close.
Amazon and Apple are among the companies that have reported better-than-expected earnings. CVS Health also posted better-than-expected earnings on Wednesday, sending its shares up by 3.7%
There have been some notable disappointments this season, however. Facebook shares lost about a fifth of their value after releasing its quarterly figures. Most recently, Disney shares dropped more than 1% after the media giant posted weaker-than-expected earnings and revenue.
Wall Street is nearing end of the latest corporate earnings season. Nearly 90% of S&P 500 companies have released their calendar second-quarter. Of those companies, 76.4% have reported better-than-forecast quarterly profits.
If the earnings season ends with at least 80% of companies beating estimates, it would mark the first time that has happened since the data was first tracked in 2008.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced a 25% charge on $16 billion worth of U.S. goods. The goods being targeted by China include vehicles such as large passenger cars and motorcycles. Various fuels are on the list, as well as fiber optical cables.
China's announcement comes after the U.S. Trade Representative's office released a finalized list of $16 billion worth in Chinese goods that will be hit with tariffs. The U.S. charges will take effect on Aug. 23. The latest U.S. list brings the total worth of Chinese goods facing a 25% tariff to $50 billion.
Prices for the benchmark for the 10-year U.S. Treasury gained ground, lowering yields to 2.97% from Tuesday’s 2.98%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions
Oil prices surrendered two dollars to $67.17 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gave back 10 cents to $1,218.20 U.S. an ounce.
