The Toronto stock market was lower with traders focused on the outcome of the interest rate meeting of the U.S. Federal Reserve.
The S&P/TSX composite index faded 28.81 points by noon to 14,340.17
The Canadian dollar descended 0.34 cents at 89.46 cents U.S. The slide added to a drop Tuesday of more than two-thirds of a cent after Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz said slower-than-normal growth may be the new norm.
Barrick Gold Corp fell 1.5% to $22.21 and Goldcorp was off 0.8% at $30.59, with the gold miners falling with bullion prices on a mixture of caution ahead of the Fed and an easing of anxiety over the Ukraine crisis. Worries about Ukraine have recently added to gold's safe-haven appeal.
Among energy stocks, Canadian Natural Resources was up 1.5% at $41.17.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported this morning that Wholesale sales rose 0.8% to $50.0 billion in January, following a decline in December, with gains recorded in all subsectors except motor vehicle and parts.
Elsewhere, Jim Flaherty, the long-serving Conservative finance minister who helped steer the economy through the global financial crisis, resigned from the cabinet on Tuesday, leaving the country on track to balance its books by 2015. Energy Minister Joe Oliver has been named by Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Flaherty’s replacement.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange eased 1.21 points to 1,037.74
Nine of the 14 Toronto subgroups were down by noon ET, weighed mostly by metals and mining, down 2.3%, while gold slid 1.3% and materials dove 1.2%.
The five gainers were led by consumer staples, up 0.7%, while telecoms and information technology issues each surged 0.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
It's Janet Yellen's first meeting in charge of the U.S. Federal Reserve and investors are looking forward to hearing from her after the meeting.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ducked back 3.27 points to 16,332.92
The S&P 500 index slid 0.34 points to 1,871.91. The NASDAQ demurred 3.36 points to 4,329.95
In corporate news, FedEx blamed "unusually severe winter storms" for quarterly earnings that came in below estimates. But the fact that snow would impact FedEx wasn't that big of a surprise, and shares of the shipping company were modestly higher Wednesday morning.
United Parcel Service reported a similarly poor profit last quarter due to the weather. Both stocks are in negative territory for the year.
Oracle dropped after reporting revenue that fell short of Wall Street expectations.
Shares of Orbitz tumbled 7% after the travel site operator was downgraded to a "sell" rating by analysts at Goldman Sachs.
Horizon Pharma surged after the biotech company said it was buying Dublin-based Vidara Therapeutics International for $660 million. Biotechnology stocks have been on a tear this year, although some of the leading stocks have pulled back lately on concerns about valuations.
The Fed's Open Market Committee concludes its two-day policy meeting this afternoon. Investors are shifting their focus from Russia's takeover of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula to the FOMC.
The Fed is widely expected to continue trimming, or tapering, its monthly bond buying program by another $10 billion, to $55 billion U.S. a month.
The Fed's asset purchases, a policy known as quantitative easing, was created at the height of the 2008 financial crisis to support the U.S. economy. Many experts say it also has been a key driver behind the bull market in stocks for the past five years.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries listed lower, raising yields to 2.70% from Tuesday’s 2.68%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices advanced 19 cents to $99.89 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices shed $17.40 to $1,341.60 U.S. an ounce.
