Stocks in Toronto made headway toward breakeven, falling just short by Monday’s closing bell, as energy stocks weighed things down.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 3.96 points to close Monday at 15,052.03
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.18 cents to 80.01 cents U.S.
Energy stocks were chief among those subgroups losing ground, as Crescent Point Energy faded 17 cents, or 2%, to $8.25, while Encana Corporation dumped 18 cents, or 1.6%, to $11.26.
Consumer discretionary issues also fell back, as Canadian Tire dropped 68 cents to $151.36, while Magna International dipped $1.16, or nearly 2%, to $58.45.
Financials also had a bad day of it, as Manulife dropped 18 cents to $24.60, while Bank of Nova Scotia doffed 39 cents to $77.25.
Gold stocks led gainers, as Kinross Gold climbed 20 cents, or 3.8%, to $5.49, while Goldcorp took on 54 cents, or 3.3%, to $16.84.
Among materials, Lundin Mining strengthened 51 cents, or 5.5%, to $9.80, while First Quantum Minerals took on 78 cents, or 5.4%, to $15.20.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange leaped 7.64 points, or nearly 1%, to 777.11.
The 12 TSX subgroups were evenly divided between gainers and losers, as gold shone 3.4% brighter, materials were mightier 2.3%, and industrials eked higher 0.3%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed most by energy, down 1%, consumer discretionary stocks, sliding 0.6%, and financials, descending 0.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
Shares of oil refinery companies rose on Monday after Harvey, a Category 4 hurricane, forced refineries in Houston to shut down.
The Dow Jones Industrials remained negative 5.27 points to 21,808.40, with Travelers contributing the most to the losses. The 30-stock index traded higher earlier in the session.
The S&P 500 eked up 1.19 points to 2,444.24, with health-care leading three sectors higher and energy the biggest decliner.
The NASDAQ gained 17.37 points to 6,283.02
Harvey, a hurricane that was later downgraded to a tropical storm, ravaged Houston and other parts of Texas over the weekend, with more than 30 inches of rain falling in some parts in just 48 hours. Houston is home to several of the major U.S. refineries.
Shares of Valero Energy, Phillips 66 and Marathon Petroleum all rose in afternoon trade.
Entering Monday's session, the Dow, S&P and NASDAQ were all down for the month as investors grapple with lingering worries about the Trump administration's ability to move forward with tax reform.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note were up slightly, lowering yields to 2.16% from Friday’s 2.17%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slumped $1.11 to $46.76 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained $18.30 to $1,316.20 U.S. an ounce.
