The Toronto stock market was lower Wednesday afternoon as the initial run of earnings from the big Canadian banks failed to impress and persuaded investors to take some profits.
The S&P/TSX composite index dropped 54.95 points to end the session at 13,264.92
The Canadian dollar ditched 0.46 cents at 93.45 cents U.S.
National Bank shares shed early gains and was down $1.37 to $89.53 after it posted $337 million in quarterly net income, adding up to a full-year profit of $1.554 billion.
Ex-items, the bank had $370 million of adjusted net income, or $2.09 per share, up eight per cent from $1.93 per share a year earlier, which met expectations. National Bank is also upping its quarterly cash dividend by 6% to 93 cents and also announced plans for a two-for-one stock split.
Shares of rival Bank of Montreal slid 30 cents to $69.95.
Elsewhere on the TSX, the tech sector was also negative with CGI Group down $1.49 to $37.03.
Metal prices improved following the U.S. jobs data with March copper ahead eight cents to $3.25 U.S. a pound. The base metals component was lower while Thompson Creek Metals dropped 25 cents, or 9.2%, to $2.48.
The energy sector was down as Imperial Oil advanced 70 cents to $45.89
The gold group jumped while Goldcorp climbed 68 cents to $22.93.
In other corporate developments, Air Canada rose 27 cents to $8.00 after an analyst at BMO increased the price target for the carrier's shares to $10 from $7.50. Air Canada's share price has skyrocketed during this 2013 from a 52-week low of $1.59.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported this morning that this country’s merchandise imports declined 1.2% and exports decreased 0.3% in October. As a result, Canada's trade balance with the world went from a deficit of $303 million in September to a surplus of $75 million in October.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 4.23 points to 919.52
Losing groups outdid gainers eight to six among the 14 TSX subgroups. Information technology clicked 1.1% lower, while financials and health-care each dumped 0.7%.
The half-dozen gaining groups were led by gold, shining 2.8% brighter, while materials were up 2.1%, and global base metals improved 0.8%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks drifted lower Wednesday as investors tried to make sense of better-than expected economic reports and gauge the mindset of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones Industrials dipped 24.85 points, to finish at 15,889.80
The S&P 500 index skidded 2.34 points to 1,792.81. The NASDAQ nicked ahead 0.80 points to 4,038
In corporate news, J.C. Penney said Tuesday that same-store sales in November grew 10% from the same period last year. The stock, which has been the worst performer on the S&P 500 this year, is in the midst of a turnaround and has caught the attention of some major hedge funds.
But investors seemed unimpressed with the decent November sales. Shares of J.C. Penney were down about 4%.
Shares of Deere jumped over 3% after the agricultural machinery giant announced it boosted its share repurchase program.
Another mover was Hewlett-Packard, which rose more than 3% after reports that the PC and printer maker plans to shed 1,100 jobs in its U.K. unit.
Also trending on StockTwits: Apple. Shares of the iPad maker have surged back to life in recent months, gaining almost 50% from its 52-week low earlier this year. Activist investor Carl Icahn reiterated in an interview with Time Wednesday that he wants the company to buy back more of its stock.
Economically speaking, a report showed the U.S. economy added 215,000 private-sector jobs in November, according to payroll processor ADP -- well above the 160,000 gain that was expected.
The strong jobs numbers raised concerns about the Fed pulling back, or tapering, its $85-billion-U.S.-per-month bond-buying program.
The Census Bureau also said sales of new single family residential homes rose 25% in October compared to September, topping economists' expectations.
In its Beige Book report on regional economic activity, the Fed said the economy expanded at a "modest to moderate pace" from early October to mid-November.
It noted gains in the auto and high-tech industries and reported that retailers are "hopeful, but cautious" about the holiday shopping season.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries lost strength, raising yields to 2.84% from Tuesday’s 2.78%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices hiked $1.12 to $97.16 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $22.80 to $1,243.60 U.S. an ounce.
