The Toronto stock market amassed a modest advance Thursday afternoon due in large part to a jump in the mining sector.
The S&P/TSX composite index moved higher by 59 points to close Thursday at 13,831.58, but was weighed down in part by Bombardier after the transport giant said that its flagship new airliner will be going into service later than expected.
The Canadian dollar moved higher by 0.05 cents to 91.48 cents U.S.
Bombardier shares plunged 35 cents, or 7.7%, to $4.17 after the company announced the delay concerning its new CSeries aircraft. Volume was very heavy at 29.1 million shares, almost six times the issue's daily average of about five million.
The aircraft builder said that the CS100 won't be going into service until the second half of 2015, while the larger CS300 will go into service about six months later. The initial CSeries planes were previously expected to be ready for service late this year or early in 2015.
The Bombardier announcement helped push the industrial segment down. Railway stocks also declined and Canadian National Railways fell $1.09 to $58.64 while Canadian Pacific Railway lost 73 cents to $163.52.
The metals and mining sector led advancers, even as March copper declined two cents to $3.34 U.S. a pound.
Teck Resources gained $1.19 to $28.51 while Thompson Creek Metals advanced for a third day after an upgrade by Bank of America/Merrill Lynch. Its stock advanced 12 cents to $3.28 after having risen 12% Wednesday and 18% Tuesday.
The energy sector was ahead as Birchcliff Energy jumped 86 cents, or 11.4%, to $8.43.
The gold sector rose as Iamgold climbed seven cents to $4.25.
In other corporate news, Montreal-based food company Saputo is closer to acquiring a majority state in Australia's oldest dairy processor. Bega Cheese Ltd. says it will sell its 18.8% stake in Warrnambool Cheese & Butter to Saputo.
Prior to Bega's announcement, Saputo had acquired about one-quarter of Warrnambool's stock. Saputo continues to face one rival, Australia's Murray Goulburn, which owns about 17.7% of Warrnambool. Saputo gained 74 cents to $51.68.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that offshore investors added $8.7 billion of Canadian securities to their holdings in November, mostly corporate securities. It’s the fifth straight monthly rise, while Canadian investors acquired $6.6 billion of foreign securities, all bonds.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange dipped 1.27 points to 974.54.
All but one of the 14 Toronto subgroups gained on the day, led by a 4.4% advance in metals and mining. Global base metals hiked 3% and health-care issues were 1.6% more robust.
Only industrials missed the party, sagging 1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Bad news from Corporate America weighed on the market Thursday.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average erased 64.53 points to close at 16,417.01
The S&P 500 index backtracked 2.49 points to 1,845.89. The NASDAQ recovered 3.81 points to 4,218.69.
Best Buy was the biggest loser in the S&P 500, with shares tumbling almost 30%. Investors were disappointed after the retailer reported a drop in holiday sales.
Best Buy shares more than tripled in 2013, as investors bet on a turnaround at the company.
Also in the retail world, shares of J.C. Penney declined after the troubled department store owner announced plans to eliminate 2,000 jobs and close 33 stores.
Investors were also wading through a number of quarterly results Thursday, including reports from banks Goldman Sachs and Citigroup
Citigroup's earnings were the first from the big six banks to disappoint investors. Shares declined more than 4% after reporting earnings and revenue that fell short of expectations.
Goldman Sachs' earnings were better than analysts' forecasts, but shares were also lower as the bank's profit in the last three months of 2013 fell 19% from a year earlier.
Shares of railroad CSX fell sharply after the company said its profit declined during the fourth quarter due to weak coal demand. Shares of rival railroads Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific, which report results next week, were also down.
Dow components Intel and American Express both reported earnings that missed expectations following the closing bell Thursday. Shares of each company declined in after-hours trading.
In other corporate news, shares of Nu Skin tanked following reports that the Chinese government has begun investigating the company following allegations from newspaper the People's Daily that the U.S. multi-level marketing skincare company is running a pyramid scheme in China.
Nu Skin said the People's Daily article "contains inaccuracies and exaggerations that are not representative of Nu Skin's business in China" and claimed the "reporters did not attempt to verify any information with Nu Skin."
But traders had mixed reactions, with some seeming unconvinced by Nu Skin's response and others dismissing the investigations.
Shares of Herbalife, a multi-level marketing nutrition company, also fell. Activist investor Bill Ackman has been accusing Herbalife of being a pyramid scheme since December 2012. But the company has defended itself. And many investors, including billionaire Carl Icahn, have placed bets on the company despite Ackman's bearish position.
Shares of Hewlett-Packard moved higher as investors grew optimistic about the firm's plans to sell some new tablets in the Indian market.
CEC Entertainment, the owner of Chuck E. Cheese, announced that private equity firm Apollo Global Management was buying it for $1.3 billion U.S.
On the economic front, filings for initial jobless claims fell last week. A reading on consumer prices for December showed that inflation remains tame.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained strength, lowering yields to 2.84% from Wednesday’s 2.88%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slid five cents to $94.12 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices picked up $3.70 to $1,242.00 U.S. an ounce.
