The Toronto stock market was lower Tuesday as concerns about China's economy depressed commodity prices and resource stocks while two major banks posted solid earnings reports.
The S&P/TSX composite index was off 38.10 points to close the day at 14,188.98
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 2% 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 stock rose six cents to $72.63 while National Bank edged up 62 cents to $44.23.
The energy sector drifted lower as Imperial Oil gave back 57 cents to $48.63
The base metals component was off while March copper fell for a second day, down one cent to $3.25 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources dipped 51 cents to $24.49.
The gold sector was flat while Barrick Gold fell 17 cents to $23.35.
BlackBerry was a major gainer, up 86 cents, or 7.9%, to $11.73 as the smartphone maker 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 a system from Microsoft.
The strong showing followed a runup of almost 7% on Monday.
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 8.21 points to 1,010.74.
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower on the day, with global base metals tumbling 1.4%, gold down 1.2% and materials sliding 0.8%.
The three gainers were health-care, perking 1.3%, information technology, inching up 0.2%, and real-estate, better by only 0.03%. Utilities were flat on the day.
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 went south 27.48 points to finish trading Tuesday at 16,179.66
The S&P 500 index dipped 2.49 points to 1,847.12. The NASDAQ lost 5.38 points to 4,287.59
In other corporate news, Macy's shares jumped 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 after a report suggested the company's technology could be used in Ford cars to connect vehicles to drivers' smartphones. Blackberry has had a rough go in recent years as it's continued to lose ground in the competitive smartphone market.
But the stock has gotten a boost this year as investors have grown optimistic of its turnaround potential.
Tesla surged more than 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.
JPMorgan shares fell after the nation's largest bank said it was cutting jobs in its mortgage business. The plan was unveiled during a presentation Tuesday in which the firm said it will slim down personnel at its branches in response to technological changes in consumer banking
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.
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 79 cents to $102.03 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices moved forward $2.50 to $1,340.50 U.S. an ounce.
