Canadian stock markets were in the red for a second session Friday as nervousness about Chinese growth, corporate earnings and stock valuations persuaded investors to sell off ahead of the weekend.
The S&P/TSX composite index tailed off 50.31 points Friday to end the day and week at 14,257.69
The Canadian dollar stepped back 0.37 cents at 91.09 cents U.S.
The industrials sector shed strength after Caterpillar heavy equipment dealer Finning International Inc. provided preliminary revenue numbers for the first quarter of 2014.
Its shares fell 38 cents to $29.07 as it said that new equipment revenues in South America were significantly lower than the prior year quarter. But it said overall revenues for the 2014 first quarter are expected to be approximately $1.676 billion, up 8% from a year ago.
The energy sector was off as Imperial Oil docked two cents to $51.69, and Suncor stepped back 26 cents to $39.44
The gold sector was down as Goldcorp lost 42 cents to $26.42, and Barrick Gold dropped eight cents to $20.46
The base metals group was up while May copper shed early gains and closed unchanged at $3.04 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources dipped 12 cents to $24.63.
Former Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who steered Canada through the global financial crisis and then nearly eliminated the huge budget deficits he had run up in the process, died on Thursday just weeks after resigning.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 4.08 points to 997.77
All but three of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower, with health-care capsizing 1.5%, information technology off 1.2%, and gold off 1.1%.
The three gainers were in real-estate, up 1%, utilities, up 0.06%, and energy stocks just scraping past breakeven.
ON WALLSTREET
Investors were heading for the exits Friday as weakness in the technology sector appears to be spreading to the broader stock market.
As was the case Thursday, the NASDAQ was the biggest loser. The tech-heavy index fell 1.3% and ended the week nearly 3% lower. The NASDAQ let go of 54.38 points to 3,999.73
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 143.47 points to 16,026.75, after JPMorgan reported weaker-than-expected earnings growth. It's ended the week down more than 2%.
The S&P 500 was negative 17.39 points to 1,815.69. The information technology was the hardest hit, but more defensive sectors such as utilities and telecoms were also under pressure.
It's a sharp reversal for the broad market gauge, which hit an all-time high just last week. The S&P 500 is now off more than 1% year to date.
It's been a tough few weeks for so-called momentum stocks, with high-flying technology and healthcare companies bearing the brunt.
In corporate news, JPMorgan's results said earnings were hurt by weakness in bond trading, while consumer lending and deposits were a bright spot. Despite the lackluster quarter, CEO Jamie Dimon said he has "growing confidence in the economy."
The news was a bit rosier for Wells Fargo, which reported a double-digit profit gain for the first quarter.
Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs will report results next week.
Overall, earnings for the companies in the S&P 500 are expected to fall 1.2% in the first quarter, according to FactSet Research. That would mark the first annual decline since the third quarter of 2012.
H&R Block shares jumped initially after the company said it will sell its bank to Bofl Federal Bank, but the stock is now down. Shares of retailer GAP slid after the retailer reported a sales decline for March.
Economically speaking, the U.S. producer price index – a measurement of wholesale inflation -- advanced a seasonally-adjusted 0.5% after falling slightly in February, the U.S. Labor Department said -- the largest increase since last June and surpassing the 0.1% estimate of economists.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries inched forward, lowering yields to 2.62% from Thursday’s 2.63%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices lost two cents to $103.38 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices dipped $1.90 to $1,318.60 U.S. an ounce.
