Tsx pauses as china data moves positive
TORONTO • The Toronto stock market closed little changed Monday amid positive economic news from China and the U.S., along with major deal-making in the industrial and mining sectors.
The S&P/TSX composite index was off 3.34 points to 15,105.63.
The Canadian dollar rose 0.22 of a cent to US93.23¢ on top of a gain of almost twothirds of a cent on Friday to a five-month high. The currency rose sharply as higherthan-expected inflation data on Friday raised questions about whether the Bank of Canada might move interest rates higher sooner than thought.
U.S. indexes were tepid amid strong U.S. home sales and manufacturing figures.
The Dow Jones industrials declined 9.82 points to 16,937.26 and the Nasdaq added 0.64 of a point to 4368.68.
The S&P 500 index slipped 0.26 of a point to 1962.61 as the Markit Economics flash manufacturing purchasing managers index for the U.S. edged higher in June, rising to 57.5 from 56.4 in May. The index is at its highest level since May 2010.
Also, sales of U.S. existing homes jumped 4.9% in May in the best monthly gain in nearly three years, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.89 million homes.
Meanwhile, data released Sunday showed the Chinese manufacturing sector moving into expansion territory. HSBC’s purchasing managers index hit a sevenmonth high at 50.8.
The TSX paused Monday after gaining about 0.7% last week, leaving the main Toronto index up more than 10% year to date.
Consumer discretionary stocks were the leading TSX decliners as Quebecor Inc. lost 69¢ to $26.01. The gold sector built on last week’s strong run-up of over 5%. The group rose 1.5% as bullion prices added to gains racked up last week amid tensions between Ukraine and Russia and a growing insurgency in Iraq. August gold rose $1.80 to US$1,318 an ounce.
The base metals sector was ahead 0.8% as the Chinese data helped push July copper up US3¢ to US$3.15 a pound.
The tech sector was also supportive, up 0.6% with BlackBerry Ltd. continuing to benefit from last week’s well-received quarterly earnings report, up 34¢ to $10.85.
The energy sector was flat as oil prices declined after rising steadily over the last two weeks as a Sunni uprising gained momentum in Iraq. Crude oil was off US66¢ to US$106.17 a barrel.
On the corporate front, SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. is acquiring U.K.-based Kentz Corp. Ltd., a global oil and gas sector engineering firm, in a deal worth $2.1-billion. SNC shares rose 91¢ to $53.31.
HudBay Minerals Inc. is buying Augusta Resource Corp. in a friendly takeover deal worth $555-million. Hudbay was down 24¢ to $10.05, while Augusta ran ahead 24¢ to $3.44.
And in the U.S., software maker Oracle Corp. is buying Micros Systems Inc., which provides software and hardware to the hospitality and retail industries, for about US$5.3-billion.