Stocks on Bay Street were lower on Wednesday morning, as sentiment turned negative on concerns over political unrest between the United States and China, but a rally in cannabis producers led by Canopy Growth kept losses at bay.
TSX Composite index was down 20.77 points, or 0.12%, at 16,990.63.
Canopy Growth shares jumped 13.5% after Bank of America Merrill Lynch upgraded the stock to "BUY" saying Wall Street estimates now look achievable for maybe the first time in its history as a public company.
On the economic front, data showed Canada's annual inflation rate in October held steady at 1.9%, in spite of a slight increase in gasoline prices over the previous month.
The Canadian dollar inched 0.21 cents lower to 75.19 cents U.S.
Gold for December delivery was off $3.5, or 0.2%, at $1,470.80 an ounce.
West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery added 35 cents, or 0.6%, to trade at $55.70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after falling below its 50-day moving average of $55.59 on Tuesday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange was up 1.27 points at 523.74.
Seven of the 12 Toronto subgroups were positive, with health-care surging 4.0%, gold stronger by 1.2% and techs better by 0.61%.
The five laggards were weighed most by energy, slipping 0.46%, telecoms shedding 0.33%, and financial stocks off 0.25%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks were lower Wednesday morning as doubts persisted about progress on a U.S.-China trade deal, despite encouraging earnings from some retailers.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 60 points, 0.2%, at 27,874, while the S&P 500 was off 4 points, 0.1%, at 3,116. The Nasdaq lost about 4 points, less than 0.1%, at 8,566.
Trade talks between the U.S. and China are in danger of hitting an impasse, threatening to derail the Trump administration’s plan for a limited “phase-one” pact this year, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing former administration officials.
Both sides remain divided over core issues—including Beijing’s demand for removing tariffs and the U.S.’s insistence on China buying farm products—nearly six weeks after an “agreement in principle” was announced by the White House on Oct. 11.
Shares of Target Corp. soared toward a record Wednesday, after the discount retailer reported fiscal third-quarter profit and revenue that rose above expectations, and raised its full-year outlook.
Lowe’s Cos. said net income from its third-quarter ending Nov. 1 jumped to $1.05 billion, or $1.36 a share, from $629 million, or 78 cents a share. Shares of the home improvement retailer also touched a new high.
The 10-year Treasury note yield fell 3.4 basis points to 1.752%.
