Stocks approached noon hour in Toronto on Thursday slightly lower as materials issues weighed and Bombardier Inc jumped on speculation of a pending order for its aircraft.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell backward 21.6 points to move into noon hour at 13,649.75
The Canadian dollar slid 0.11 cents to 77.91 cents U.S.
Among the most prominent players on the index included fertilizer producers Agrium Inc, which fell 4.5% to $107.85, and Potash Corp, down 2.5% to $20.85 after several analysts downgraded their views on the stocks.
Bombardier touched its highest point level since Nov. 6, jumping as high as almost 10% to $1.57, on speculation of a potential Delta Air Lines Inc order for its CSeries planes. Delta's CEO said it has not made a decision.
Shaw Communications Inc declined 2.7% to $23.65 after reporting quarterly earnings.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported its new housing price index rose 0.2% in February, following a 0.1% increase in January.
The advance was led by higher new home prices in Ontario and British Columbia.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange resumed its march, moving forward 2.43 points to 624.15
Eight of the 13 TSX subgroups were still in the green, as information technology and financials each gathered 0.8%, while consumer staples gained 0.7%.
The five laggards were weighed most by gold, dulling in price 3.7%, while materials were off 3.5%, and the metals and mining group slumped 2.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks in the States traded in a range Thursday, trying for a third-straight day of gains, amid bank earnings and choppy trade in oil.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 36.26 points at lunch hour to 17,944.54, with Goldman Sachs the top gainer and Wal-Mart Stores and Intel falling the most.
The S&P 500 recovered 2.56 points to 2,084.98, information technology the greatest laggard in the S&P 500, while financials led the benchmark index.
The NASDAQ index revived 7.51 points to 4,954.93
Bank of America reported an 18% slide in quarterly profit as concerns about a global economic slowdown and uncertainty about the pace of U.S. interest rate increases dampened bond and stock trading.
BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, posted a 20% drop in first-quarter profit on Thursday amid a dramatic reversal in financial markets.
Wells Fargo reported a 7% fall in quarterly profit as the third-largest U.S. bank by assets set aside more money to cover bad loans, mainly to energy companies.
In economic news, weekly jobless claims declined to a seasonally adjusted 253,000, revisiting a level last seen in 1973.
The consumer price index rose 0.1% last month. In the 12 months through March, the core CPI that strips out food and energy costs, rose 2.2% after gaining 2.3% in February,
Prices for the 10-year Treasury dropped, raising yields to 1.80% from Wednesday’s 1.76%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices regained 24 cents a barrel to $42.00 U.S.
Gold prices erased $16.23 to $1,226.24 U.S. an ounce.
