The Toronto stock market was lower Wednesday amid a generally positive read on the U.S. housing sector. Traders also looked for hints as to when the U.S. Federal Reserve may wind up its latest round of stimulus.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 52.15 points to break for lunch at 12,758.06, after Tuesday’s jump of nearly 1%.
The Canadian dollar fell 0.53 to a new seven-month low of 98.33 cents U.S.
Gold stocks declined, as Kinross Gold Corp. faded 32 cents to $7.72 while Iamgold lost 30 cents to $7.76.
The base metals component was off while March copper declined four cents to $3.61 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources dropped 69 cents to $32.08 while HudBay Minerals fell 63 cents to $10.01.
The energy sector dipped as Canadian Natural Resources was down 28 cents to $30.79.
Consumer staples stocks also weakened as grocer Loblaw Cos. lost 59 cents to $39.30.
The financial sector led advancers ahead of the start of a series of quarterly earnings from Canada’s banks next week.
Scotiabank rose 82 cents to $59.97.
Crombie Real Estate Investment Trust said Tuesday it is spending $132 million to buy four retail plaza properties in Alberta. Crombie owns 169 commercial properties in nine provinces, comprising about 1.3 million square metres of rentable space. Its units were down 13 cents to $14.55.
On Wednesday, renewable energy producer Boralex Inc. reported that quarterly net income fell to $1.2 million or three cents per share, down sharply from $8.2 million a year ago. Revenue from energy sales slid 6.5% in what the company has described as a "transitional year." Its stock rose 14 cents to $9.30.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dumped 21.42 points to 1,150.38
All but one of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower at noon Wednesday. Gold stocks surrendered 2.4%, while global base metals fell 2.3%, and materials eased 2%.
The lone gainer was in financials, up 0.2%
ON WALLSTREET
Investors were reluctant to push stocks higher Wednesday, one day after the Dow and S&P closed at new five-year highs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average settled 17.26 points to 14,018.40
The S&P 500 index doffed 6.87 points to 1,524.07. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite shaved off 17.31 points to 3,196.28
All three indexes are up between 6% and 8% for the year.
Homebuilder Toll Brothers reported revenue and earnings that fell short of analysts' expectations.
On the corporate front, Office Depot announced that it would merge with OfficeMax in a deal valued at $1.2 billion U.S. Shares of OfficeMax shares rose 2%, while Office Depot's stock sank 7%.
Mining firm BHP Billiton said lower commodity prices and a weaker U.S. dollar in the second half of 2012 more than offset its stronger volumes. The company also announced that CEO Marius Kloppers will retire in May, and will be succeeded by Andrew Mackenzie, who previously headed the company's division specializing in non-ferrous metals.
Rio Tinto shares fell, amid tensions surrounding its copper mine in Mongolia. The Mongolian government owns 34% of the mine and is demanding a greater share of profit.
SodaStream shares dropped after the company's revenue forecast was slightly more conservative than analysts' had hoped.
Tesla is scheduled to report results after the closing bell.
After the close Tuesday, Dell reported earnings and revenue that fell from a year ago but topped analyst expectations. Its shares rose Wednesday morning.
Investors shrugged off another round of positive data on the U.S. housing market
Building permits, an indication of future residential construction, rose more than expected in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 925,000. That's up 1.8% from December and marks the best month since June 2008.
Meanwhile, new construction slowed. Housing starts were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 890,000 in January. That's 8.5% below the revised December rate.
A separate report on the Producer Price Index showed wholesale prices rose 0.2% in January, slightly less than economists had expected.
At 2 p.m. ET, the U.S. Federal Reserve will release the minutes of its policy meeting from January 29-30, which investors will parse for clues about how long the central bank will continue its stimulus efforts.
Prices on the 10-year U.S. Treasury were up slightly midday, lowering yields to 2.02% from Tuesday’s 2.03%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices ditched $2.25 to $94.41 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dipped $22.70 to $1,581.50 U.S. an ounce.
