Equities in Toronto fell as the “Last Post” sounded on Remembrance Day, as lower commodity prices pressured the shares of energy and mining companies, while financials and industrials also lost ground.
The S&P/TSX Composite tumbled 199.04 points, or 1.4%, to greet noon at 14,545.21. Losses for the index left it below the 14,656.84 level it closed at on Tuesday before the result of the U.S. presidential election.
The Canadian dollar dropped 0.27 cents, to 74 cents U.S.
Canadian Natural Resources fell 2.3% to $40.78, while TransCanada was down 1.6% to $59.21, paring some of this week's gains on bets that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump might revive the Keystone XL pipeline.
Agnico Eagle Mines fell 4.1% to $60.16 and Barrick Gold declined 1.9% to $20.81.
South Africa's Gold Fields and Silver Standard Resources have made three joint, unsolicited bids for Canada's Kirkland Lake Gold and recently sweetened their offer to about $1.4 billion, three sources familiar with the process said.
Kirkland Lake's shares jumped after the news and were up 2.4% at $8.04.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange fell 16.13 points, or 2.2%, to 727.50
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups remained negative midday, as gold lost 4.4% of its luster, materials retreated 3.3%, and energy ditched 2.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities fluctuated between gains and losses on Friday as the post-U.S. election rally took a breather, with the three major indexes poised to record their best weekly gains of the year.
The Dow Jones Industrials was still in the red, but had made its way to within 8.36 points of breakeven to 18,799.52, with DuPont contributing the most losses
The S&P 500 was still down 6.55 points at 2,160.93, with energy falling 2.2% to lead decliners
The NASDAQ composite index had shifted gears and turned positive 12.31 points to 5,221.10
Experts say the Federal Reserve is largely expected to raise rates next month, which said market expectations for higher rates were around 76%.
Before the bell, Fed Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer said the case for removing accommodation is "quite strong" while interest rates will plateau at a level that is lower than normal. He added that He expects U.S. rates to rise gradually, and said the Fed is close to achieving its dual mandate. The Fed's goal is to return to 2% longer-run inflation and to maximize employment.
In economic news, consumer sentiment for November came in at its highest level since June.
Since Donald Trump's victory in the race for the White House, investors have been quickly reallocating assets, increasing exposure to financials and industrials, while lowering positions in sectors like utilities, real-estate and consumer staples.
Entering Friday, financials and industrials had gained 10.9% and 7.7%, respectively, while utilities, consumer staples and real estate were down 3.7%, 2% and 1.6% respectively.
In economic news, consumer sentiment data are due this morning.
Bond markets are closed in the U.S. for Veterans Day.
Oil prices skidded $1.33 to $43.33 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices plummeted $35 to $1,231.40 U.S. an ounce.
