The Toronto stock market was sharply lower Wednesday as mining and energy stocks retreated alongside prices for oil and metals while traders took in a generally positive read on the U.S. housing sector.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 96.16 points to end Wednesday at 12,714.05, erasing Tuesday’s jump of nearly 1%.
The Canadian dollar fell 0.51 to a new seven-month low of 98.34 cents U.S.
Kinross Gold Corp. faded 47 cents, or 7.6%, to $7.57 while Iamgold lost 51 cents, or 6.3%, to $7.55.
The base metals component lost ground while March copper declined four cents to $3.61 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources dropped $1.11, or 3.4%, to $31.66 while HudBay Minerals fell 49 cents, or 4.6%, to $10.15.
The energy sector also fell. Canadian Natural Resources was down 62 cents to $30.45.
The tech sector also weakened as BlackBerry lost 64 cents, or 4.4%, to $13.93.
The financial sector led advancers ahead of the start of a series of quarterly earnings from Canada’s banks next week.
Scotiabank rose 79 cents to $59.94.
On the earnings front, 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 15 cents to $9.29.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dumped 40.63 points to 1,131.17
All 14 Toronto subgroups were lower Wednesday. Gold stocks surrendered 4.2%, while global base metals fell 3.4%, and materials faltered 3.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
Investors weren't willing to push stocks higher Wednesday, only a day after the Dow and S&P closed at new five-year highs.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 108.13 points to 13,927.50
The S&P 500 index doffed 18.99 points to 1,511.95. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite dropped 49.19 points to 3,164.41
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 fell 7%, while Office Depot's stock sank 18%.
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 was scheduled to report results after the closing bell.
Controversial nutritional supplements company Herbalife also announced better-than-expected earnings sales figures Tuesday afternoon.
But shares fell Wednesday after Herbalife executives did not entertain many questions on a conference call with analysts. Herbalife has been in the spotlight since well-known hedge fund manager Bill Ackman accused the company late last year of operating a pyramid scheme.
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.
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 $1.81 to $94.85 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dipped $24.90 to $1,581.50 U.S. an ounce.
