Canada's main stock index traded lower on Friday, as job data raised concerns about the country falling into a combination of economic slowdown and higher inflation, while food processing company Saputo dragged the benchmark on its cautious forward-looking statement.
The TSX fell 32.6 points to 19,910.10, midday Friday.
The Canadian dollar hiked 0.22 cents to 75.05 cents U.S.
A Statistics Canada report showed the economy unexpectedly shed jobs in May and the unemployment rate rose for the first time in nine months, in a rare sign of job market softness particularly in the services sector.
Saputo, for its part, fell $3.91 or 11.3%, to $30.91, its worst day in over three years, after the food processing firm said it expects its international division to be negatively impacted by lower product prices in the coming year.
Lundin Mining slid 19 cents, or 1.9%, to $9.92, after a Chilean environmental court extended its order that will prevent the miner from reopening its Alcaparrosa copper mine, which the court closed nearly a year ago after a gaping sinkhole opened in a nearby village.
Among other stocks, Brookfield Asset Management said it would buy payments provider Network International for 2.2 billion pounds ($2.76 billion U.S.) in cash, as it expands its payments business in the Middle East and Africa. Brookfield shares gained four cents to $42.16.
Eldorado Gold three cents to $13.19, after brokerage BMO resumed coverage on the stock with an "outperform" rating.
StatsCan reported Employment was little changed in May, having fallen by 77,000 (-2.8%) for youth aged 15 to 24, and increased by 63,000 (+0.5%) among people aged 25 to 54.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange skidded 0.62 points to 611.06.
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were still lower by noon hour, with health-care ailing 1.5%, consumer staples off 1.2%, and gold down 0.6%.
The four gainers were led by information technology, progressing 0.8%, energy, up 0.2%, and consumer discretionary stocks eking up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
The S&P 500 rose slightly Friday, reaching the 4,300 benchmark for the first time since August 2022 as investors looked ahead to new inflation data set for release next week, along with the Federal Reserve’s latest policy announcement.
The Dow Jones Industrials came down from its highs of the morning, staying ahead 11.95 points to 33,845.56.
The S&P 500 gained 7.92 points to 4,301.85.
The NASDAQ index pointed up 39.31 points to 13,277.83.
For the week, the S&P 500 was up 0.5%, on track for its fourth straight weekly gain. That would be the index’s longest weekly winning streak since August. The Nasdaq was also up about 0.5%, on pace for its seventh straight advance one-week advance, which would be its longest streak of gains since November 2019.
Tesla shares popped 5% on news that General Motors will use its electric vehicle charging network. GM’s stock also climbed 0.5%. DocuSign shares, meanwhile, jumped 7% after the electronic agreements firm beat analysts’ first-quarter expectations on the top and bottom lines.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury lost ground, raising yields to 3.75% from Thursday’s 3.71%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up 22 cents to $71.51 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices shed $2.80 to $1,975.80 U.S. an ounce.
