Equity markets in Canada ended lower on Monday, as major gold miners weighed heavily and banks also fell after the federal government tightened mortgage and tax rules in a bid to cool the housing market.
The S&P/TSX Composite came off its lows of the day, but still slid 36.82 points to end Monday at 14,689.04
The Canadian dollar nicked ahead 0.1 cents to 76.28 cents U.S.
Gold took the lion’s share of lumps Monday, as Kinross Gold shed 14 cents, or 2.5%, to $5.39, and Barrick Gold dropped 45 cents, or 1.9%, to $22.78.
Materials issues, also fell, as Teck Resources let go of eight cents to $23.57.
Energy issues, on the other hand, moved forward, as EnCana moved up 29 cents, or 2.1%, to $14.00, while Baytex Energy collected three cents to $5.60.
Industrials made a decent showing of it, with Air Canada climbing 68 cents, or 6.4%, to $11.28.
Shares in Spectral Medical slumped $1.37, or 85.1%, to 24 cents after it said its experimental treatment for sepsis - a common, often deadly complication of infection - failed a late-stage study, stymieing the company's plans to bring to market the first U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved device for the condition.
On the economic slate, RBC says its seasonally-adjusted Canadian Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index declined to 50.3 in September, compared to 51.1 in August and below market expectations of 51.5.
ON BAY STREET
The TSX Venture Exchange docked 7.82 points to 792.41
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups lost ground Monday, as gold hurtled 2.6% lower, materials dropped 2%, and real-estate weakened 1%.
The three gainers were energy, gushing 0.7%, industrials, up 0.3%, and information technology, inching ahead 0.1%.
ON WALL STREET
U.S. stocks closed lower on Monday, the first trading day of the fourth quarter, as investors digested key economic news and kept an eye on oil prices.
The Dow Jones Industrials retreated 54.3 points to 18,253.85, with Procter & Gamble leading decliners and DuPont the top advancer.
The S&P 500 slid 7.07 points to 2,161.20, with utilities all sectors lower.
The NASDAQ Composite also stayed negative, despite moving to within 11.13 points of breakeven to 5,300.87
Nissan reported its September U.S. auto sales rose 4.9%, beating expectations. Ford reported a sales fall of 8%, still better than the expected 8.5%. Toyota sales, meanwhile, missed estimates, rising 1.5%. General Motors fell 0.6%, less than expected.
In economic news, the September Markit Manufacturing PMI came in at 51.5, a three-month low. Markit said U.S. manufacturers signaled another moderate upturn in both production volumes and incoming new work during September, but the latest survey indicated a further loss of growth momentum from July's recent peak.
The Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing index for September came in at 51.5, up from 49.4 in the previous month.
Construction spending fell 0.7% in August, with analysts expecting a 0.2% increase.
Crude prices rose broadly before paring gains, supported by a planned production cut by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, although analysts cautioned a stubborn supply overhang could temper a longer-lasting rally. Brent prices broke above $50.00 U.S., hitting their highest level since August, and WTI traded about 1% higher earlier.
The OPEC deal is expected to take effect in November.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury stayed lower, raising yields to 1.62% from Friday’s 1.6%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained 42 cents to $48.66 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices fell two dollars at $1,315.10 U.S. an ounce.
