The Toronto stock market registered a slight gain Tuesday afternoon with traders inclined to do little while hoping that the U.S. presidential election will yield a clear-cut winner.
The S&P/TSX composite acquired 8.42 points to end Tuesday at 12,361.20
The Canadian dollar moved higher 0.46 cents to 100.81 cents U.S.
Among gold plays, Iamgold rose 58 cents, or nearly 4%, to $15.22 while Barrick Gold Corp. was up 28 cents to $35.28.
The metals and mining sector was ahead as December copper added two cents to $3.49 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources advanced 65 cents to $33.53.
Uranium One Inc. shares fell five cents to $1.95 as the miner booked a quarterly loss of $61.6 million, or six cents per share, compared to a profit of $45.8 million, or five cents per share, a year earlier. The miner booked a $79.1-million write down during the quarter related to the value of its shuttered South Zarechnoye uranium deposit.
Elsewhere in the sector, Inmet Mining Corp. said Tuesday it would not be buying any shares of Petaquilla Minerals Ltd. after a hostile takeover bid failed to garner enough support by its deadline. Petaquilla shares tumbled 15 cents, or 23.4%, to 49 cents while Inmet shares gained 80 cents to $56.76.
The energy sector was up as Canadian Natural Resources gained 33 cents to $30.20.
Penn West Petroleum Ltd. stock was down 41 cents, or more than 3%, to $11.19 after the company announced four senior executives including the chief operating officer have left.
The tech sector declined with CGI Group off $1.37, or 5.3%, to $24.61.
Patent licensing firm Wi-LAN Inc. says quarterly net income was $2.2 million (U.S.) or two cents per share, down from $7.3 million (U.S.) or six cents per share a year ago. Revenue fell to $21.3 million (U.S.) from $27.8 million. The company cited the timing of licensing payments as a major reason for the decreases. Its shares drifted 22 cents lower to $5.00.
Utilities were also weak as Atlantic Power dropped $1.59, or 10.8%, to $13.20.
On the economic front, the pace of purchasing activity in Canada slowed in October, according to Ivey Purchasing Managers Index data on Tuesday. The seasonally adjusted index fell to 58.3 in October from 60.4 in September. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected an adjusted reading of 58.2. Any reading above 50 indicates that activity picked up from the month before.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange advanced 1.21 points to 1,303.14
The 14 Toronto subgroups found the losers nosing out the gainers eight to six, weighed mostly by health-care, down 2%, information technology, down 1.1%, and utilities, off 0.9%.
The half-dozen gainers were led by gold, up 1.5%, materials, advancing 1%, and the metals and mining, ahead 0.9%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks advanced Tuesday as voters headed to the polls on Election Day.
The Dow Jones Industrials gathered 133.24 points, or 1%, to 13,245.70, with United Technologies, Hewlett-Packard and Boeing among the biggest gainers.
The S&P 500 moved up 11.13 to 1,428.39, and the Nasdaq Composite Index hiked 12.27 points at 3,011.93
While the latest national polls show that President Obama and Republican opponent Mitt Romney are neck-and-neck, the former Massachusetts governor is an overwhelming favourite of Wall Street, according to a survey of investment strategists and money managers.
In corporate news, Fossil posted quarterly earnings that beat forecasts, but revenue fell short of estimates, sending shares of the accessories maker significantly lower.
Zillow shares dropped sharply after the real estate website delivered a weaker-than-expected revenue outlook for the rest of the year.
AOL shares soared more than 20% after the company delivered strong earnings and revenue results, as advertising sales climbed 7% during the quarter.
Office Depot swung to a loss in the third quarter, as the company's sales fell 5%. But excluding certain charges, the office supply chain beat earnings expectations, sending shares 19% higher.
Shares of Express Scripts sank after the healthcare management firm said analysts' estimates for its 2013 earnings were "overly aggressive."
DirecTV shares edged lower after the company lost more subscribers than expected during the third quarter, and missed earnings estimates. The satellite TV provider was hurt earlier this year by its dispute with Viacom, which blacked out channels including Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon for 20 million DirecTV customers.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury sagged a bit, pushing the yield up to 1.74% from 1.68% late Monday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices were up $2.80 at $88.35 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices surged $32.90 per ounce to $1,716.10 U.S.
