Equities in Canada’s largest centre opened lower on Friday, weighed down by a 6% drop in energy stocks as oil prices hit a two-month low amid fears of a possibly vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant.
The S&P/TSX Composite plunged 372.36 points, or 1,7%, to open the week’s last session at 21,240.82.
The Canadian dollar ditched 0.78 cents at 78.18 cents U.S.
PetroTal said on Thursday that indigenous protests in an Amazon region of northern Peru had blocked river transportation of its crude and it may be forced to halt operations in the coming days if the situation was not resolved.
PetroTal shares forfeited a penny, or 3.3%, to 29.5 cents.
CIBC cut the target price on Alimentation Couche-Tard to $57.00 from $59.00. Shares in the convenience store chain swooned 49 cents, or 1%, to $47.42.
Canaccord Genuity raised the target price on Canadian Net REIT to $9.00 from $8.50. Net REIT units handed back a dime, or 1.3%, to $7.91.
CIBC raises target price on Suncor Energy to $48.00 from $44.00. Shares in Suncor lost $2.62, or 7.7%, to $31.40.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange staggered 25.53 points, or 2.6%, to 950.05.
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups were in minus country in the first hour of trade, with energy stumbling 6.8%, financials poorer by 2.4%, and consumer discretionary stocks sinking 2.3%.
Only gold held out against the negative tide, gaining1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stock dropped sharply on Friday as a new COVID variant found in South Africa triggered a global shift away from from risk assets.
The Dow Jones Industrials cratered 893 points, or 2.5%, to open the post-Thanksgiving session at 34,856. U.S. markets were closed Thursday on Thanksgiving Day.
The S&P 500 index demurred 88 points, or 1.9%, to 4,611.
The NASDAQ slipped 181.75 points, or 1.1%, to 16,184.25.
The stock market closes early at 1 p.m. ET on Friday.
Travel-related stocks were hit hardest with Carnival Corp. and Royal Caribbean down more than 10% apiece in early trading. United Airlines dropped 9%, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines were each down more than 7%. Boeing lost 6%. Marriott International fell more than 7%.
Bank shares retreated on fears of the slowdown in economic activity and the retreat in rates. Bank of America and Citigroup were each down more than 4%.
Industrials linked to the global economy declined led by Caterpillar off by 3.7%. Dow Inc. shed 3%.
Chevron dropped 3.2% as energy stocks reacted to the rollover in crude prices.
On the flip side, investors huddled into the vaccine makers. Moderna shares gained more than 16%. Pfizer shares added 5%.
Some of the stay-at-home plays that gained in the earlier months of the pandemic were higher again. Zoom Video added nearly 9%. Netflix was up 1.5%.
The downward moves came after WHO officials on Thursday warned of a new COVID-19 variant that’s been detected in South Africa. The new variant contains more mutations to the spike protein, the component of the virus that binds to cells, than the highly contagious Delta variant.
Because of these mutations, scientists fear it could have increased resistance to vaccines, though WHO said further investigation is needed.
The United Kingdom temporarily suspended flights from six African countries due to the variant. Israel barred travel to several nations after reporting one case in a traveler. Two cases were identified in Hong Kong. Belgium also confirmed a case.
Prices for 10-year Treasurys gained sharply, lowering yields to 1.51% from Wednesday’s 1.64%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices hurtled earthward $6.86 to $71.73 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $14.70 to $1,799 U.S. an ounce.
