Toronto equity markets index fell on Friday as crude prices dropped and investors took profits following five straight days of gains.
The S&P/TSX composite index tumbled 123.31 points to greet noon at 14,607.77
The Canadian dollar fell 0.18 cents at 76.96 cents U.S.
In all, 24 of the 25 biggest drags on the index came from its three most influential sectors: energy, financials and materials.
In the energy group, Suncor Energy fell 1.9% to $34.56; in financials Royal Bank of Canada declined 0.9% to $77.19; and in the mining-heavy materials sector Barrick Gold Corp tumbled 5.4% to $11.33.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported that inflation in Canada moved up last month. The consumer price index rose 1.0% in the 12 months to June, after increasing 0.9% in May. On a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, the Consumer Price Index rose 0.4% in June, matching the increase in May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slid four points to 634.74
All but two of the 14 TSX subgroups were lower midday, as gold slid 3.9%, metals and mining dipped 2.8%, and materials were poorer by 2.7%.
The two gainers were industrials, up 0.3%, and consumer staples eked up 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded mixed on Friday, with the NASDAQ at a new high, as investors digested more earnings and data reports.
The Dow Jones industrial average faded 73.83 points by noon hour ET to 18,046.42, with Intel leading decliners. General Electric led advancers after reporting earnings.
The S&P 500 slid 1.37 points to 2,122.92, with energy leading nine sectors lower and information technology the only advancer, rising 1.4 percent.
The NASDAQ index hiked 33.88 points to 5,197.06, a new intraday record, as Google Class A stock briefly surged more than 16.5% to above $700 U.S. a share.
Shares of Etsy also leaped more than 30% in heavy volume trade after Google mentioned in its conference call that developers like the e-commerce site are seeing a boost in traffic as a result of deep linking.
In other economic news, housing starts rebounded strongly in June, up 9.8%, and building permits surged to a near eight-year high.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries were higher, lowering yields to 2.35% from Thursday’s 2.36%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices weakened 64 cents a barrel to $50.27 U.S.
Gold prices tumbled $13.00 to $1,130.90 U.S. an ounce.
