Equities in Toronto were feeling around for the bruises at the close of business Thursday, on the eve of jobs figures. The index was weighed most by health-care and gold stocks.
The S&P/TSX lost 228.54 16 points, or 1.1%, to wrap up Thursday at 20,563.89.
The Canadian dollar decreased 0.9cents to 78.74 cents U.S.
Health-care concerns took the hardest blows, Tilray sinking 26 cents, or 5.3%, to $4.64, while Bausch Health Companies dipped 63 cents, or 5.6%, to $10.65.
Gold stocks got hammered, too, as New Gold forfeited six cents, or 3.5%, to $1.64, while Novagold shed 19 cents, or 2.6%, to $7.09.
Among real-estate companies, Colliers International falling $3.87, or 2.6%, to $143.44, while Summit Industrial REIT units losing 37 cents, or 2%, to $18.43.
Only utilities kept things from being unanimous, with Boralex gathering 42 cents, or 1% to $44.11, while Hydro One took on 30 cents to $34.28.
Economists say the Bank of Canada has signaled plans to race ahead with a series of oversized hikes to curb inflation, raising the risk of plunging the economy into a recession, though worth it if it keeps rapid price rises from becoming entrenched.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dropped 12.31 points, or 1.7%, to 711.88.
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups were negative on the day, with health-care peeling lower 3.3%, gold falling 1.8%, and real-estate tailed off 1.1%.
Only utilities enjoyed positive momentum, picking up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks fell sharply on Thursday ahead of a key inflation report as investors worried about the state of the U.S. economy.
The Dow Jones Industrials plummeted 638.44 points, or 1.9%, to 32,272.46.
The S&P 500 handed back 97.97 points, or 2.4%, to 4,017.80. The index has shed about 1% this week.
The NASDAQ Composite fell 66.72 points to 12,019.55.
Casino stocks were some of the worst performers in the S&P 500, with Las Vegas Sands falling 4.5% and Caesars Entertainment sliding 2.9%. Chinese tech stocks reversed recent gains and dragged on the NASDAQ, with Pinduoduo sinking more than 10.3%.
Some major tech stocks also struggled, with Meta Platforms sliding nearly 4% and Amazon dropping 2.3%. Boeing was the worst performer in the Dow, falling more than 3%.
The slide for stocks comes ahead of the May consumer price index report on Friday. Investors are looking to see if inflation has peaked or if the Federal Reserve will need to be even more aggressive to tamp down price increases.
Initial jobless claims rose to 229,000 last week, worse than the 210,000 expected.
Treasury prices shed strength, raising yields to 3.05% from Wednesday’s 3.02%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped 98 cents to $121.13 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices lost seven dollars to $1,849.50 U.S. an ounce.
