Canada's main stock index edged lower midday Wednesday, as shares of precious metal miners fell in the wake of a decline in gold prices ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's monetary policy decision.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index disposed of 25.82 points to greet noon Wednesday at 16,554.91
The Canadian dollar sank 0.11 cents to 74.54 cents
Endeavour Mining fell 45 cents, or 2.4%, to $18.57, after posting quarterly results, while the second biggest decliner was Kelt Exploration, down 24 cents, or 4.3%, to $5.30.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange faded 1.3 points to 610.01
Seven of the 12 Toronto subgroups were lower midday, as gold skipped back 1.3%, energy waned 1.1%, and materials lost 0.6%
The five gainers were led by information technology, surging 1.1%, while communications and health-care each gained 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose on Wednesday following the release of Apple’s quarterly results and strong jobs data for April.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 61.82 points to 26,654.73, with Apple contributing most of the gains.
The S&P 500 picked up 4.91 points to 2,950.74, and hit a fresh all-time high as the tech sector gained 0.7%. The broad index is also having its best start to a year since 1987.
The NASDAQ Composite index gained 43.25 to 8,138.64
Apple shares rose 6% after its earnings and revenue for the previous quarter beat expectations. The tech giant’s guidance for the next quarter was also better than expected. The stock was also on track for its best day since Jan. 30, when it rose 6.8%.
Advanced Micro Devices gained 1.8%, and Mondelez gained 1.1%, after posting better-than-expected results.
Overall, the corporate earnings season is turning out better than analysts had expected. Of the companies that have reported so far, 75% have beaten earnings estimates.
Equities also got a boost after ADP and Moody’s Analytics said private payrolls increased by 275,000 in April, easily blowing by a Dow Jones estimate of 177,000. The strong gain was led by an increase of 223,000 in payrolls within the services sector.
The report by ADP and Moody’s is largely considered to be a preview for the U.S. government monthly jobs report.
The report is the latest piece of economic data to top expectations. Last week, the Commerce Department said the U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.2% in the first quarter, easily surpassing expectations.
Other data released Wednesday include the Institute for Supply Management manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index for April, which fell to its lowest level since October 2016.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury were up, lowering yields to 2.48% from Tuesday’s 2.51%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slid 83 cents to $63.08 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices lost $2.30 to $1,283.40 U.S. an ounce.
