Canada's main stock index dropped on Friday as oil and gas shares kept diving after OPEC's decision on Thursday not to cut output pushed oil prices to four-year lows, while gold-mining shares also fell on a lower bullion price.
The S&P/TSX composite index plummeted 132.51 points early afternoon Friday at 14,789.53
The Canadian dollar fell 0.80 cents to 87.46 cents U.S.
Among oil and gas producers, Canadian Natural Resources shed 2.6% to $37.45, and Suncor Energy lost 1.9% to $36.18.
The gold-mining sector was down, reflecting weakness in the bullion price. Barrick Gold dropped 3.2% to $13.84, and Goldcorp fell 2% to $23.
Economically speaking, Statistics Canada reported that Gross Domestic Product rose 0.7% in the third quarter, following a 0.9% gain in the second quarter. On a monthly basis, real GDP by industry increased 0.4% in September.
The agency’s Industrial Product Price Index decreased 0.5% in October, mainly because of lower prices for energy and petroleum products.
StatsCan’s Raw Materials Price Index slid 4.3% in October, largely as a result of lower prices for crude energy products.
Moreover, Canada's current account deficit in the third quarter unexpectedly narrowed to $8.4 billion, its best performance in six years, Statistics Canada data indicated on Thursday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange plummeted 14.37 points to 741.08
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower soon after midday, with gold hurtling 5.8% lower, metals and mining down 5.2%, and global base metals sliding 4.8%.
The four gaining groups were led by consumer staples and consumer discretionaries, each up 0.7%, and real-estate, gaining 0.5%
ON WALLSTREET
Energy stocks were mixed Friday a day after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries did nothing to alleviate a global supply glut, while the transportation and retail sectors jumped.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 0.49 points to close Friday at 17,828.24. Even so, the blue-chips had a marvelous November, gaining 2.5% on the month.
The S&P 500 dipped 5.27 points to wind up at 2,067.56. The NASDAQ index moved up 4.31 points to 4,791.63, gaining 3.5% during November.
Markets stateside operated an abbreviated scheduled today, closing at 1 p.m. ET.
Among major stock movers, Exxon Mobil Corp. lost 3.9%, while fellow Dow component Chevron Corp. dropped more than 5%.
Among other energy shares, Transocean Ltd. sank 9.8%, ConocoPhillips fell 6.8% and Halliburton Co. erased more than 11% of its value.
And it was a particularly brutal day for U.S. shale companies, with several posting double-digit percentage declines
On Thursday, the 12-member oil cartel OPEC announced it would hold its output target at 30 million barrels per day, triggering a sharp decline in oil prices. The decision surprised some market professionals, who had forecast that Saudi Arabia would push through a cut.
Crude touched four-and-a-half-year lows on the news
On the flip side, transportation companies were getting a lift from the prospect of lower energy prices. Delta Air Lines Inc. surged 6.4%, Southwest Airlines Co. rose 6.5% and Carnival Corp added 4.5%.
Retailers were in the spotlight during early Friday, as shops opened the doors for their annual Black Friday sales (with some having opened late Thursday). Wal-Mart Stores Inc. advanced 3.3%, Amazon.com rose 2% Macy’s Inc. added 2.4%, and Best Buy Co. advanced 2.1%.
Wal-Mart reported early Friday that Thanksgiving Day delivered its second-highest online sales day ever, topped only by Cyber Monday last year.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained ground, lowering yields to 2.20% from Wednesday’s 2.23%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices went south six dollars to $67.69 U.S.
Gold prices dropped $24.50 at $1,172.10 U.S.
