Markets in Toronto opened lower on Wednesday as investors were nervous ahead of a Federal Reserve policy statement that is expected to provide clarity on the U.S. central bank's plans to raise interest rates.
The S&P/TSX composite index shed 22.87 points to open Wednesday at 14,875.66
The Canadian dollar fell 0.06 cents to 78.1 5 cents U.S.
Paradigm Capital raises the rating on Agjunction Inc to buy from hold. Agjunction shares were unchanged at 56 cents.
Raymond James cut the target price on Savanna Energy Services to $2.00 from $2.50, with a market perform rating. Savanna shares inched up two cents to $1.64.
Barclays raised the target price on Alimentation Couche-Tard to $51.00 from $44.00. Couche-Tard gained $1.05, or 2.1%, to $50.29.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that wholesale trade for January recorded the largest monthly decline since January 2009, decreasing 3.1% to $53.7 billion, which more than offset the gain in December.
The agency goes on to say sales were down in four of seven sub-sectors, led by motor vehicle and parts. Excluding this sub-sector, wholesale sales declined 1.3%.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange inched up 0.23 points to 659.44
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were lower soon after the open, with metals and mining weakening 1.4%, global base metals down 0.7%, and materials lower by 0.5%.
The three gainers were health-care, up 0.7%, consumer staples, advancing 0.6%, and information technology, inching up 0.1%
Telecoms were unchanged at the opening bell.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded lower on Wednesday as investors awaited signals on the timing of an interest rate hike from the Fed statement and press conference expected in the afternoon.
The Dow Jones Industrials fell 65.96 points to 17,783.12.
The S&P 500 slid 5.71 points to 2,068.57,
The NASDAQ index dipped 9.65 points to 4,927.79
FedEx posted earnings that beat on revenue that was slightly below estimates. The company's full-year guidance was also slightly lower than expected, but its commentary was generally upbeat and analysts have pointed out that FedEx guidance tends to be on the conservative side.
General Mills reported adjusted quarterly profit of 70 cents U.S. per share, three cents above estimates, with revenue also beating Street consensus. The cereal maker and food producer said it expects to continue "strong growth" during the current quarter.
Williams-Sonoma, Guess and Cintas are all due to report after the bell.
Alibaba's share lockup expires on Wednesday, allowing the Chinese e-commerce and web conglomerate to sell up to 437 million of its shares.
Apple is scheduled to replace AT&T in the Dow Jones industrial average on Wednesday after the bell, as Visa implements a four-for-one stock split.
American Airlines will replace Allergan in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on March 20. Allergan is in the process of being purchased byActavis.
Last week, Skyworks Solutions replaced PetSmart in the index on BC Partner's acquisition of the pet supplies retailer.
The Federal Open Market Committee is scheduled to conclude its two-day meeting on Wednesday, with investors watching to see if "patient" remains in the statement or not. The highly anticipated statement is expected at 2 p.m. ET, with a press conference by Fed Chair Janet Yellen at 2:30 p.m.
Investors will also watch to see if the stronger U.S. dollar figures into the Fed statement. The dollar continued to hold at highs, while the euro traded below $1.06 U.S.
In more housing news, weekly mortgage applications fell 3.9% despite the drop in interest rates, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries gained, lowering yields to 2.04% from Tuesday’s 2.06%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped $1.30 to $42.16 U.S.
Gold prices faded $1.80 to $1,146.40 U.S.
