The Toronto stock market was slightly higher Monday with buying sentiment muted following weak economic data from the U.S. and particularly Japan.
The S&P TSX Composite Index improved 24.51 points to close at 11,552.76
The tech sector was also a weight on the TSX as shares in Research In Motion continued to suffer amid threats by a number of countries -- including India, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates -- to cut off BlackBerry services unless they get greater access to user data.
RIM stock fell another $2.64 or 4.8% to $52.95. Its stock is down about 10% this month as investors also focus on other problems facing the company.
Among energy issues Suncor Energy gained 18 cents to $33.09 and Cenovus Energy was down 16 cents to $26.99.
The base metals sector lost ground as the September copper contract in New York was three cents higher to $3.28 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources advanced 26 cents to $33.81 while Quadra FNX Mining fell 33 cents to $10.20.
In the gold sector, Barrick Gold Corp. ran ahead 81 cents to $45.59 while Goldcorp Inc. improved by 87 cents to $42.22.
In corporate news, Canadian fertilizer company Agrium Inc. said it is looking to buy Australian grain marketer AWB Limited in a deal worth A$1.24 billion or $1.14 billion Canadian. Agrium shares declined $1.26 to $68.81.
In economic news, the Canadian Real Estate Association said sales of existing homes in Canada fell 6.8% in July to 31,536 homes and were down 30% year-over-year. However, the agency said the average price of homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service was $330,351, up 1% from a year ago.
The Canadian dollar settled 0.27 cents to 95.76 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
Nine of the 14 TSX subgroups were higher on the day Monday. Gold’s 2% hike led the parade, while materials and the global base metals sector were co-runners-up, jumping 1.1% each.
The five laggards were weighed by information technology, down 1.3%, while telecoms and industrials were off 0.3%.
The TSX Venture Exchange moved higher by 0.11 points to finish at 1,457.16, while the Nasdaq Canada index decreased 17.43 points to 602.50.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, equities fluctuated on either side of breakeven in a choppy session Monday as investors weighed acquisition deals in the tech sector with weaker-than-expected economic data.
The Dow Jones industrial average tripped 1.14 points lower to 10,302.01
The S&P 500 index gained 0.13 points to 1,079.38. The tech-rich Nasdaq composite index gathered 8.39 points to 2,181.87
Investors were trading cautiously following four straight losing sessions in the wake of the Federal Reserve's bearish outlook last week. A raft of downbeat economic reports and some tepid earnings results added pressure.
Leading the Dow's gains, shares of Cisco Systems rose 2.5% and shares of Intel gained 1.5% Monday, after acquisition announcements from Intel and Dell sparked excitement about other possible takeover deals in the tech sector.
Intel will buy Texas Instruments' cable modem product line, the company said Monday. It did not disclose the cost of the deal.
Meanwhile, Dell said it agreed to acquire data-storage company 3PAR for $1.15 billion U.S., a deal that the company said could cut its data management costs by 50%. Shares of Dell fell 1.1% after the announcement and 3PAR rose 86%.
Lowe's stock gained 2% after the home improvement retailer posted higher fiscal second-quarter profit and revenue - although the company missed forecasts and lowered its outlook.
Lowe's reported a profit of $832 million U.S., or 58 cents U.S. per share, for the quarter ended July 30. That was below the 59 cents U.S. per share analysts were forecasting, but was up 9.6% from $759 million U.S., or 51 cents U.S. a share, a year earlier, thanks to cost-cutting measures.
In economic news, the Empire Manufacturing survey jumped to 7.10 in August from 5.08 in July, showing growth in the sector in the New York region. Economists polled by Briefing.com had expected a jump to 7.50.
A separate report from the National Association of Home Builders showed builder confidence for newly built single-family homes edged down for a third consecutive month in August. The Housing Market Index released Monday declined one point to 13, its lowest level since March of 2009.
Economists had expected the index to hold steady at July's 14 points.
Treasury prices were stronger, lowering yields for the benchmark 10-year note to 2.58% from Friday’s 2.69%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The price of a barrel of oil surrendered 26 cents to $75.13 U.S.
Gold prices increased $10 at $1,226 U.S. an ounce.
