Turmoil returned to financial markets as oil plunged past $27.00 U.S. a barrel, the TSX sank as much as 466 points before paring back losses in the afternoon and global equities approached a bear market that is fueling a rush into haven assets.
The S&P/TSX composite index slumped 159.13, or 1.3%, to finish at 11,843.11, after plunging as much as 400 points intraday.
The Canadian dollar recouped 0.44 cents to 69.03 cents U.S.
The gauge posted its 13th decline in the past 16 days, and entered a bear market two weeks ago. It’s down more than 10% year to date.
Bank of Canada policy makers kept their benchmark interest rate unchanged Wednesday and said stronger U.S. demand, a weaker currency and two rate cuts last year are leading the economy out of an oil slump.
Financial stocks got thumped the worst, as Royal Bank sank $1.81, or 2.7%, to $65.62, while TD Bank fell 88 cents, or 1.8%, to $49.41.
Among industrial stocks, Canadian National Railways backtracked $2.66, or 3.7%, to $69.04, though Bombardier shares strengthened two cents, or 1.7%, to $1.20.
Gold provided a rare beacon on a gloomy day, with Barrick Gold triumphing 78 cents, or 7.1%, to $11.79, while Goldcorp surrendered a penny to $14.32.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported that manufacturing sales in November increased 1.0% to $50.8 billion, led by higher motor vehicle sales in Ontario.
The agency also said wholesale trade rose for the first time in five months, up 1.8% to $55.9 billion in November.
StatsCan added that sales were higher in four of seven subsectors, led by motor vehicle and parts. Excluding this subsector, wholesale sales were up 1.2% in November.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange staggered 6.63 points, or 1.4%, to 473.74.
All but two of the 13 TSX subgroups were negative on the day with financials off 1.8%, consumer discretionaries down 1.5%, and industrials sliding 1.4%.
Gold soared 2.2%, while materials gained 0.8%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed lower but well above session lows Wednesday as the S&P 500 held a technical level and biotechs recovered to trade higher.
The Dow Jones industrial average came back from losses of 560 points, but still lost 249.28 or 1.6%, to 15,766.74, with IBM contributing the most to declines. UnitedHealth proved the biggest gainer.
The S&P 500 slid 20.99 points, or 1.1%, to 1,860.34, to hit its lowest since February 2014. Energy closed down nearly 3% after briefly dipping 6%.
The NASDAQ index spent some of the day 100 points off the pace, before climbing back to within 5.26 points of breakeven at 4,471.69.
Netflix turned higher in afternoon trade, while Apple also attempted to recover losses and hold more than 0.5% higher.
In corporate news, Goldman Sachs reported earnings that beat expectations on both lines. However, profit fell for a third-straight quarter, hit by a $5-billion U.S. settlement of crisis-era legal claims. The stock fell more than 2% in mid-morning trade.
F5 Networks and SLM were both set to report after the bell.
In economic news, the December U.S. CPI showed a 0.1% decline. Ex-food and energy, the index rose 0.1% after rising 0.2% for three straight months. In the 12 months through December, this so-called core CPI rose 2.1%, the largest gain since July 2012, after climbing 2% in November.
Building Permits fell 3.9% in December. Housing starts fell 2.5% but the seasonally adjusted annual pace remained above one million.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury spiked, lowering yields to 1.99% from Tuesday’s 2.05%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices lost $1.91 a barrel to $26.55 U.S.
Gold prices jumped $14.29 to $1,101.70 U.S. an ounce.
