Equities in Canada’s largest market found their way a few points north of breakeven Monday, as gold and materials powered the rise, even as a change at the helm of broadcaster Rogers Communications kept investors transfixed.
The S&P/TSX Composite inched up 11.53 points to close Monday at 14,596.52
The Canadian dollar inched up 0.06 cents to 76.16 cents U.S.
The Chief Executive of Rogers, Guy Laurence, is reportedly stepping down effective immediately and will be replaced by former Telus executive Joe Natale as soon as possible.
The surprise move came as Rogers also posted a sharp fall in net income after it shut down the streaming television joint venture, Shomi. Rogers shares closed 13 cents lower to $54.21.
Gold stocks were stronger, as Barrick Gold climbed in price 26 cents, or 1.3%, to $20.86, while Yamana Gold took on five cents, or 1%, to $4.84.
Materials stocks sparkled as well, as Lundin Mining jumped 16 cents, or 3.2%, to $5.15, while Teck Resources triumphed 90 cents, or 3.7%, to $25.56.
Among consumer discretionary stocks, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers dipped 39 cents to $46.22.
Among information technology concerns, BlackBerry settled 17 cents, or 1.7%, to $9.67.
In the health-care field. Valeant Pharmaceuticals lost $1.05, or 3.6%, to $28.08, while Concordia International fell 18 cents, or 3.7%, to $4.64.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported foreign investment in Canadian securities totaled $12.7 billion in August, led by acquisitions of Canadian bonds on the secondary market.
At the same time, the agency says, Canadian investment in foreign securities slowed to $1.6 billion. This resulted in a net inflow of funds of $11.1 billion into the Canadian economy in the month
ON BAY STREET
The TSX Venture Exchange finished negative 0.74 points to 772.28
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower on the day, as consumer discretionary stocks descended 0.6%, while information technology fell 0.5%, and health-care stumbled 0.4%.
The five gainers were led by gold, shining 1.5% brighter, while materials improved 0.8%, and real-estate moved up 0.7%.
ON WALL STREET
U.S. stocks closed lower on Monday, amid falling oil prices, as investors digested a number of corporate results, key economic data and remarks from a key Federal Reserve official.
The Dow Jones Industrials staggered 53.82 points to 18,084.56, with McDonald's leading decliners and Johnson & Johnson the top advancer.
The S&P 500 slid 6.48 points to 2,126.50, with consumer discretionary leading seven sectors lower and utilities leading risers.
The NASDAQ composite index dropped 14.34 points to 5,199.82, as Apple declined 0.4%.
Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer warned of the dangers of low interest rates, suggesting they could lead to longer and deeper recessions, making the economy more vulnerable.
On the earnings front, banking giant Bank of America was among the firms reporting quarterly earnings before the bell, beating expectations on both lines. Toymaker Hasbro also posted better-than-expected results, sending its stock more than 8% higher.
IBM and Netflix are among the companies scheduled to release results after the close on Monday.
Earnings season has gotten off to a good start. Experts say that, of the 34 S&P 500 companies that had reported as of Friday morning, 79% had beaten Wall Street estimates for earnings per share.
Investors also digested industrial production data, which showed a 0.1% increase in September, slightly below a consensus estimate of 0.2%. Meanwhile, the New York Fed's Empire State business conditions showed manufacturing in the state contracted for the third straight month.
A slew of economic data is scheduled for release later this week, including consumer price index, housing starts and the Beige Book.
Overseas, Chinese gross domestic product, retail sales and industrial profits are all scheduled for release on Wednesday. Last week, U.S. stocks were weighed down by a surprise fall in Chinese exports.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury gained, lowering yields to 1.77% from Friday’s 1.8%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices were down 50 cents at $49.85 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices listed lower 30 cents to $1,255.20 U.S. an ounce.
