CANADA STOCKS-TSX knocked lower as materials falter on weak gold
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* TSX down 107.69 points at 12,632.78
* Materials group falls 2.4 percent
* Six of 10 main sectors lower
TORONTO, Feb 29 (Reuters) – Toronto’s main stock index
turned lower on Wednesday morning as materials issues faltered
on weak gold prices, which skidded after comments by U.S.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke helped to push up the U.S.
dollar.
The key materials sector, which accounts for some 20 percent
of the broader Toronto index, was down 2.4 percent to lead the
market lower. Barrick Gold fell nearly 3 percent to
C$47.79 and Goldcorp sank 3 percent to C$48.10 on weaker
gold prices.
Gold prices fell more than 3 percent on Wednesday as the
euro tumbled to a session low against the U.S. dollar after
Bernanke suggested the Fed was unlikely to engage in more
monetary easing in the short term.
“In our view, there had been a lingering perception that he
might announce or give a stronger hint toward quantitative
easing. Some of that probability filtered out of the market so
the (U.S.) dollar jumped when he didn’t make any further
reference towards that, gold pulled back and Treasury yields
moved higher,” he said.
“The fact that the (U.S.) dollar jumped at the time was
probably a negative factor for stocks.”
At 10:55 a.m. (1555 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange’s
SP/TSX composite index was down 107.69 points, or
0.85 percent, at 12,632.78, with six of its 10 main sectors
lower. The market had risen after the open, climbing as high as
12,788.63.
On the upside, the economy-linked financials sector, which
accounts for about a third of the broader Toronto index, gained
0.3 percent. Royal Bank of Canada rose 0.3 percent to
C$55.77, while Toronto Dominion Bank climbed 0.7 percent
to C$80.95. Bank of Nova Scotia gained 0.4 percent and
was at C$53.79.
Supporting the earlier move higher was data that showed the
U.S. economy grew slightly faster than initially thought in the
fourth quarter on firmer consumer and business spending, fueling
investor optimism.
As well, euro zone banks grabbed 530 billion euros at the
European Central Bank’s second offering of three-year funds,
fuelling expectations that credit will flow to businesses and
borrowing costs will ease for governments hit by the region’s
debt crisis.
“We got some pretty good news out of Europe and we’re
excited that the bond yields there continue to fall,” said Barry
Schwartz, portfolio manager at Baskin Financial Services. He
also noted that the market had responded positively to the
upward revision in fourth-quarter U.S. GDP figures.
In company news, publisher Torstar Corp, owner of
the Toronto Star newspaper, posted a fourth-quarter profit that
beat expectations, as cost cuts offset weak print advertising
revenue. However, it said the revenue outlook for the media unit
remains uncertain for the year.
Torstar shares added 4.3 percent to C$9.75.
Article source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/29/markets-canada-stocks-idUSL2E8DT2K020120229