The Toronto stock market was lower Tuesday as concerns about China's economy depressed oil prices and energy stocks while two major banks posted solid earnings reports.
The S&P/TSX composite index was off 29.70 points to pause for lunch at 14,197.38
The Canadian dollar faded 0.18 cents to 90.22 cents U.S.
Bank of Montreal had $1.06 billion or $1.58 of net income in the first quarter, up two per cent from a year earlier and five cents higher than forecast. Adjusted net income was $1.08 billion or $1.61 a share, which was also ahead of estimates.
National Bank's quarterly net income totaled $405 million or $1.15 per diluted share, up from $373 million or $1.05 per share in the same 2013 period. Ex-items, earnings were $384 million or $1.09 per share, well above expectations of $1.05 per share.
Bank of Montreal was up 53 cents to $73.10 while National Bank moved up 16 cents to $43.77.
The tech sector was up as BlackBerry continued to benefit from a report from Bloomberg that automaker Ford will base its next-generation Sync system on the smartphone maker's QNX and no longer use Microsoft's Windows. Its shares ran up 75 cents, or 6.9%, to $11.62 on top of a gain of almost 7% on Monday.
Meanwhile, Tim Hortons says it sees significant room for growth in its core Canadian business. It expects to add 500 locations in this country and 300 in the United States by 2018 and its shares rose 27 cents to $58.21.
Commodity prices declined with markets rattled by a deceleration in the rise of Chinese housing prices in January and weakness in China's currency.
Last week's decline in the tightly controlled yuan prompted suggestions Beijing might be trying to support exporters and help offset weakening domestic demand. That came after an HSBC survey showed Chinese manufacturing activity in February tumbled to a seven-month low.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange stepped back 6.68 points to 1,012.27.
Nine of the 14 Toronto subgroups were down by midday, as global base metals backtracked 1.2%, metals and mining issues shed 0.9% of their strength, and energy was 0.8% less energetic.
The five gainers were led by health-care, up 1.4%, information technology, up 0.7% and utilities, advancing 0.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
Investors hit pause Tuesday, one day after a rally pushed the S&P 500 to a new high, albeit briefly.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average regained 6.19 points to break for noon at 16,213.33
The S&P 500 index dipped 0.06 points to 1,847.55. The NASDAQ lost 3.64 points to 4,289.33
Economically speaking, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index showed that home prices in the States rose 11.3% last year, even as they softened in the fourth quarter.
The housing market has been a big driver of the economic recovery, but slowly rising mortgage rates have led to a cooling in home loans in recent months.
Still, Home Depot shares gained after the retailer said that a recovering housing market drove an increase in quarterly sales.
In other corporate news, Macy's shares got a boost after the retailer reported strong sales for the holiday season. Investors have been keeping an eye on the health of the consumer for signs of economic resilience.
Shares of BlackBerry spiked following a report that the company's technology could be used in Ford cars to connect vehicles to drivers' smartphones.
Tesla surged over 16% after Morgan Stanley raised its price target on the stock. Shares of the electric car maker are up an eye-popping 640% over the last year.
Solar City shares slid after the solar panel company announced late Monday that it is postponing its earnings release until March 3, citing "accounting related to recent acquisitions." It was slated to report after the bell Tuesday.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained ground, lowering yields to 2.70% from Monday’s 2.75%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions
Oil prices retreated $1.24 to $101.58 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices moved forward $4.50 to $1,342.50 U.S. an ounce.
