The Toronto stock market finished slightly positive for the third straight day Thursday, as worries about Europe’s banks discouraged buying and pushed commodities lower and limited gains in other sectors.
The S&P/TSX Composite inched ahead 10.93 points to end the session 12,237.40
The Canadian dollar dipped 0.58 cents to 98.16 cents U.S.
The TSX financial sector successfully overcame fears of growing contagion from the weak European banking sector, as TD Bank closed six cents higher at $76.66, though Royal Bank fell 61 cents to $52.34.
The latest flight from risk sent oil and metal prices lower.
Among energy issues, Canadian Natural Resources moved down 52 cents to $39.33.
In the base metals sector, Teck Resources shed 30 cents to $38.49.
But shares in Vancouver miner First Quantum Minerals Ltd. jumped 92 cents, or 4.4%, to $21.98 after it announced that it is selling its mines in Congo and settling legal claims for $1.25 billion U.S. after its operations were nationalized by the government of the central African country.
The company said Thursday it had struck a deal with sell its mines and assets to Eurasian Natural Resources Corp. PLC, including the Kolwezi tailings project, and the Frontier and Lonshi mines and related exploration interests.
The gold sector recovered lost strength, with Kinross Gold Corp. inching upward three cents to $12.41.
In other corporate news, Magna International Inc. has acquired Vogelsitze GmbH, a German manufacturer of seats for the bus and light train industries for an undisclosed price. Magna shares grew 55 cents a share to $34.75.
Australia-listed PanTerra Gold Ltd. has made an all-stock takeover offer for Vancouver-based Novus Gold Corp., which has two highly prospective copper and gold concessions in the Dominican Republic. Novus shares haven’t traded since Tuesday when they closed at five cents.
Economically speaking, Statistics Canada came out with two reports Thursday morning whose findings were intertwined. Between October and November, the Industrial Product Price Index increased 0.2%, and the Raw Materials Price Index climbed 3.8%, both led by higher petroleum prices.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange added 1.57 points to 1,517.46, while the Nasdaq Canada index recouped 1.13 points to 382.14
Eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups were up on the day. Health-care stocks shone brightest, up 1%, while real-estate and gold issues were 0.7% each to the good.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed mostly by information technology, energy and global base metals, each subsiding 0.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks recovered from earlier losses to trade close to breakeven Thursday as investors weighed fears about Europe's debt crisis against upbeat reports on the U.S. economy.
The Dow Jones Industrials dropped 2.72 points to end the session at 12,415.70
The S&P 500 recovered 3.75 points to 1,274.81, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 21.5 points to 2,669.86.
Banks, one of the hardest hit sectors in 2011, bounced back, with shares of Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America all rising between 1% and 4%.
Shares of Barnes & Noble plunged after the bookseller said it may spin off its popular Nook e-reader business into a separate business line.
Agricultural producer Monsanto released quarterly results before the opening bell on Thursday. Profits and sales topped forecasts, sending shares up in early trading.
Investors will also be watching retailers, which report same-store sales -- a key metric of retailers' health.
Target said sales rose 1.6% for the month of December, falling far short of forecasts. As a result, the retailer also cut its fourth-quarter earnings forecast. Shares fell 5%.
Shares of Gap and JCPenney also fell on weak December sales figures.
After slumping 3% the day before, Yahoo shares fell further Thursday following news that the company had named PayPal president Scott Thompson as its new CEO.
Eastman Kodak shares dropped following a report that the company was preparing for a possible bankruptcy filing.
Stocks fell sharply in early trading as fresh concerns about European sovereign debt pushed the euro to a 15-month low versus the dollar. But the tone improved in the afternoon as investors refocused on the relatively strong performance of the U.S. economy.
The market is caught in a "tug-of-war" between the improving outlook for the U.S. economy and worries about government debt and banking problems in Europe, said one expert
The euro fell more than 1% versus the dollar to $1.27 U.S., marking the lowest point for the common currency since September 2010.
The selloff in the euro came as investors were rattled by more turmoil in European sovereign debt markets.
Spanish bond yields jumped after a government official said Wednesday that Spanish banks would need to set aside another €50 billion as part of a restructuring of the nation's banking sector.
Italian bond yields rose above 7%, crossing a key threshold that makes investors nervous.
Shares of Italian bank UniCredit fell another 16% on the Milan stock exchange Thursday after its stock offering drew tepid demand Wednesday.
France sold roughly €8 billion of 10- to 30-year bonds early Thursday, but investors remain nervous about a potential downgrade of the nation's top credit rating.
On the economic front, before the market opened, payroll processor ADP reported that private-sector employers added 325,000 jobs in December. That was much stronger than the 180,000 economists had expected.
The U.S. Labor Department said initial unemployment claims for the week ended Dec. 31 came in at 372,000 -- slightly lower than expectations of 375,000, according to a survey of analysts -- and down from a revised 387,000 the prior week.
The jobs data come ahead of the department's monthly report on private-sector payrolls on Friday. Economists expect businesses added 170,000 jobs in December, while the government cut 20,000 jobs, for a net gain of 150,000.
They're also forecasting the unemployment rate ticked up to 8.7% from 8.6% in November, mainly due to discouraged workers -- who had previously given up their job searches -- re-entering the labour force.
Moreover, the Institute for Supply Management released the December installment of its services index, which tracks non-manufacturing orders, employment and inventories. The index edged up to 52.6 from 52 in the month prior.
Treasury prices for the 10-year note lost whatever strength they’d had by the closing bell, driving the yields back up to Wednesday’s 1.99%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery slid $1.36 to $101.86 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for February delivery edged up 30 cents to $1,613.00 U.S. an ounce.
