The Toronto stock market was negative Friday afternoon as uncertainty over the Greek debt crisis again pushed the American currency higher and helped send oil and gold prices lower.
At the closing bell, the S&P/TSX Composite Index had lost 92.03 points to 11,947.98 – a descent of 65 points on the week -- after settling above the 12,000 mark in the past five sessions.
The greenback gained strength on worries about the Greek debt crisis after the country said it might turn to the International Monetary Fund for support if European leaders can’t agree to a bailout plan.
E.U. leaders will meet next week to find a deal to help Greece. But Germany, which has the 16-country eurozone’s biggest economy, has been reluctant to pledge any direct financial aid.
The uncertainty undermined the stability of Europe’s monetary union and sent investors scurrying for the perceived safety of the U.S. currency.
The energy sector was down sharply as the April crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell in price. Suncor Energy dropped 54 cents to $31.59.
The base metals sector fell with May copper two cents lower at $3.37 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources moved down 89 cents to $40.37.
Among gold stocks, Barrick Gold Corp. shares were down 19 cents at $40.13 as the world’s biggest gold miner said it expects that an initial public offering of its African Barrick Gold spinoff will reap $834 million U.S. in proceeds.
The IPO for 101 million ordinary shares would be priced at 5.75 British pounds or $8.79 per share on the main market of the London Stock Exchange.
On the TSX, the tech sector fell, with shares in MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. stumbled $3.04 or 7.3% to $38.40 after it reported earnings of $30 million in its fourth quarter while revenue fell 15%, reflecting lower sales from the company’s property information business.
Celestica Inc. was down 20 cents to $10.79.
Oil and gas producer Nexen Inc. and partner Shell have made a "significant" oil discovery in the eastern Gulf of Mexico, Nexen said Friday. Calgary-based Nexen said this would be the third discovery in the area and its results "exceeded our pre-drill expectations." Nexen shares were ahead 55 cents at $24.49.
Eldorado Gold Corp. shares fell 56 cents to $13, even as the company reported profits of $33.3 million in its fourth quarter, with revenue from gold sales increasing 29% due to record production and higher gold prices.
In economic news, Statistics Canada reported that consumer prices rose 1.6% in the 12 months to February, following a 1.9% jump in January. The growth in inflation surpassed economists' expectations for a rise of 1.4%, putting pressure on the Bank of Canada to hike interest rates sooner than expected.
In other reports, the agency said retail sales rose 0.7% in January to $35.70 billion, largely due to sales in home improvement products.
The Canadian dollar was down 0.17 cents to 98.37 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
All but two of the 14 TSX subgroups were down on the day. Information technology stocks were the worst off, sinking 2.3%, followed by metals and mining issues, down 1.7% and utilities, off 1.6%.
The two gainers were health-care, picking up 0.5%, and consumer staples, prospering 0.1%.
The TSX Venture Exchange retreated 10.80 points to 1,564.06 – four points off on the week -- while the Nasdaq Canada index jettisoned 15.48 points to 786.22.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks slipped Friday as a strong dollar dragged on commodity prices, giving investors a reason to step back after pushing the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite to 18-month highs in the previous session.
The Dow Jones industrial average moved 37.91 points lower to close at 10,741.98. Even so, the blue chips were ahead 117 points, or 1.1%, on the week.
The S&P 500 index took off 5.93 points to 1,159.90 (but nearly 10 points better than last Friday) while the Nasdaq composite let go of 16.87 points to 2,374.41 – still good enough to finish 6.75 points on the week.
Stock declines Friday were broad-based, with 23 out of 30 Dow issues falling, led by American Express, Caterpillar, Chevron, IBM, 3M, Procter & Gamble and Exxon Mobil.
Investors were taking a step back Friday after pushing stocks higher in recent weeks. The Dow, S&P 500 and the Nasdaq are all currently on track to post weekly gains. Should that happen, it would be the fifth week out of six in which the three major gauges posted gains.
The Dow has ended higher in 15 of the last 16 sessions through Thursday's close, while the Nasdaq and S&P have closed higher in 14 of the last 16 sessions.
Stocks gained Thursday after reports showed that pricing pressure remains mild and the pace of job losses is slowing.
Palm, the smartphone maker plunged 26% Friday after reporting a steeper-than-expected quarterly loss after the close of trade Thursday. Palm also said that a big buildup of inventory will drag on current-quarter revenue.
Analysts pounced on the company Friday, with two brokerages cutting their price target on the stock to $0.
Friday also brings the quarterly options expiration in which stock index futures and options as well as individual stock futures and options all expire at the same time. The event can cause wild fluctuations in the underlying stocks and greater volatility in the broader market.
However, the effect tends to be felt throughout the week of the expiration, rather than just on Friday.
The price of the benchmark 10-year note fell back a bit and its yield rose to 3.69%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The price of a barrel of oil subsided $1.54 to $80.66 U.S.
Gold prices dropped $21 to $1,107 U.S.
