The Toronto stock market pulled back Thursday, as a mixed picture emerged on the U.S. economy and expectations rose that the U.S. Federal Reserve will begin its tapering plan next month.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 24.89 points – off its lows of the morning -- to pause for lunch at 12,614.41
The Canadian dollar swung positive 0.02 cents to 96.74 cents U.S.
Telecom stocks gained after a report in the Globe and Mail said Verizon is setting aside its pursuit of smaller wireless players Wind Mobile and Mobilicity, choosing to wait until after a government wireless spectrum auction in January.
Telus stock was the biggest gainer of the pack, rising 5.4% to $32.39.
Meanwhile, Yellow Media Ltd. said the chairman of its board of directors will take on the CEO's role temporarily as the publishing company continues to search for a permanent replacement for Marc Tellier, who vacates the position Thursday.
Shares of the company rose nine cents to $12.29.
In the real-estate sector, which took the biggest pounding Thursday morning, Brookfield Asset Management dove $1.05, or 2.7%, to reach noon ET at $37.25.
On the economic front, figures released by the Canadian Real Estate Association showed national home sales edged up 0.2% from June to July. Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity came in 9.4% above levels in July 2012. The number of newly listed homes edged down 0.4% from June to July.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange remained negative but 0.54 points to 925.61
Nine of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower at noon hour, weighed mostly by real-estate, down 1.3%, health-care, down 1%, and financials, sliding 0.9%.
The five gainers were led by telecoms, up 2.5%, gold, ahead 1.3%, and materials, muscling higher 1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks tumbled Thursday on disappointing corporate earnings from Wal-Mart and Cisco.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 177.74 points, or 1.2%, to greet noon at 15,159.90, albeit off its lows of the morning.
The S&P 500 index was down 20.43 points to 1,664.96. The NASDAQ shed 46.24 points to 3,623.03
Wal-Mart reported lower-than-expected second-quarter U.S. sales early Thursday.
Those results come on the heels of news from Cisco that sent shares plunging. The network equipment maker revealed plans to cut 4,000 jobs, citing difficult economic conditions.
In other corporate news, J.C. Penney shares rose after investment manager George Soros revealed the size of his stake in the embattled retailer.
Shares rose for Kohl's after the company reported a second quarter jump in revenue, despite a drop profit. The retailer also lowered its earnings forecast for the full year.
Even though the broader market was down, particularly tech stocks,
Apple continued to make modest gains and trade above the $500 U.S. mark. Shares surged after activist investor Carl Icahn disclosed on Twitter Tuesday that he has taken a large stake in the company.
Shares of Gannett slid after Berkshire Hathaway, the investment firm run by billionaire Warren Buffett, unloaded its shares of the newspaper giant. Berkshire disclosed its holdings in a quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which was released Thursday.
Berkshire bought shares of Dish Network and Suncor Energy and ramped up its ownership of General Motors in the second quarter.
Shares of Smith & Wesson fell more than 6% after KeyBanc Capital Markets downgraded the gun manufacturer's stock from Buy to Hold. But one trader on StockTwits felt the drop in price was unjustified.
Economically speaking, the U.S. government said jobless claims dropped by more than expected to 320,000, a decrease of 15,000 from the previous week's revised figure. The U.S. Labor Department said the consumer price index rose 0.2%, in line with expectations. CPI is a key gauge of inflation.
Investors continue to look for more clues on when the U.S. Federal Reserve will start to tighten monetary policy.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury sagged, spiking yields to 2.78% from Wednesday’s 2.71%. Treasury price and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices leaped 85 cents to $107.70 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices recovered three dollars to $1,336.40 U.S. an ounce.
