The Toronto stock market was lower Friday afternoon as energy stocks declined alongside oil prices which fell after Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak stepped down amid widespread protests.
The S&P/TSX composite index shunted lower 73.81 points to close the day and week at 13,766.76.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.87 of a cent to 101.3 cents U.S.
The energy sector fell with Canadian Natural Resources giving up 98 cents to $43.24 while Suncor Energy was down 88 cents to $40.25.
The base metals sector also stepped back even as copper prices bounced off early lows with the March contract in New York unchanged at $4.55 U.S. a pound, down from last Friday’s record high close of $4.58 U.S. Equinox Minerals lost 14 cents to $6.43 while Lundin Mining shed 13 cents to $7.17.
Gold stocks also headed lower as Barrick Gold Corp. was 62 cents lower to $46.82 while Kinross Gold Corp. faded 31 cents to $16.20.
Financials were generally positive but Manulife Financial was down three cents to $17.92 on top of a slide of about 5% Thursday, as investors were disappointed by the insurer’s quarterly report.
Scotiabank gained nine cents to $59.28.
In corporate news, Telus Corp. slipped 58 cents to $47.31 as the telecom reported that its fourth-quarter profits rose to $227 million from $156 million a year ago. Revenue improved to $2.55 billion from $2.44 billion but earnings per share came in at 70 cents, falling two cents short of average analyst expectations.
Industry Minister Tony Clement is going to review PetroChina’s plan to invest $5.4 billion for half of Encana Corp.’s Cutbank Ridge assets, a shale gas play that stretches across the Alberta-British Columbia border.
The federal minister said Friday the deal will be subject to review under the Investment Canada Act and an application is expected to be filed soon and EnCana’s shares dropped 99 cents to $31.03.
Shoppers Drug Mart shares rose 84 cents to $39.38 as it said it believes its profits will grow by as much as 6% this year, despite drug reforms in several provinces that will continue to erode pharmacy sales.
In a sign of confidence about the future, Shoppers boosted its quarterly dividend by 11% to 25 cents per share after reporting better-than-expected fourth quarter results Thursday.
On the economic slate, soaring exports of crude oil and other energy products unexpectedly tipped Canada's trade balance into surplus in December after nine months of deficits, fueling hopes the much-coveted export recovery is gaining traction.
The trade surplus of $3.0 billion was the biggest since October 2008, Statistics Canada said on Friday. Analysts surveyed by Reuters had forecast the deficit would grow slightly in December to $350 million from $115 million in November, revised from $81 million previously.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange was up 9.74 points to 2,357.56, while the Nasdaq Canada index gained back 0.23 points to 813.30.
In Toronto, all but three of the 14 subgroups were lower. Gold stumbled hardest, 1.3%, while energy was 1.1% weaker, and health-care was 1% sicker.
The lone gainers were consumer staples, up 0.7%, real-estate, nipping up 0.2%, and financials, up 0.02%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks continued to march higher Friday, as investors cheered the resignation of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
The Dow Jones Industrials regained 43.97 points to close the week at 12,273.30, its 10th upward session in the last 11.
The S&P 500 index moved up 7.28 points to 1,329.15. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index prospered 18.99 points to 2,809.44.
Finnish mobile-phone maker Nokia announced plans to use Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 smartphone platform, in a bid to compete with Apple's iPhone and Google's Android.
Nokia also announced a management shakeup, and a realignment of its business units. U.S.-listed shares of Nokia slumped 15%, while Microsoft shares ticked 1% lower.
Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill jumped nearly 7% early Friday, after the restaurant chain posted a rise in profit after the bell Thursday that topped economists' expectations.
Wynn Resorts also benefited from better-than-expected earnings results released late Thursday, with shares of the casino operator rising 6% Friday afternoon.
After weeks of anti-government protests, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak relinquished his power Friday, clearing up uncertainty about escalating tensions in the country.
The move comes after Mubarak said late Thursday he would transfer some powers to the vice president, but would remain president during the transition to a new government. That prompted an uproar from Egyptians, with tens of thousands of protesters streaming into Cairo's Tahrir Square on Friday.
Economically speaking, the White House proposed a plan Friday morning to wind down beleaguered mortgage backing companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in an effort to reform the housing market.
The U.S. trade gap widened to $40.6 billion U.S. in December -- the highest level in three months, according to government data. Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com expected the trade balance to have widened to $40.4 billion U.S., from $38.3 billion U.S. in November.
The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment index for February edged up to 75.1, from 74.2 in January.
The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury gained ground, dropping the yield to 3.65% from Thursday’s 3.71%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery gave up $1.30 to $85.43 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for April delivery slid $2.60 to $1,359.90 U.S. an ounce.
