The Toronto stock market closed lower Wednesday despite indications that the U.S. Federal Reserve is in no hurry to hike interest rates.
The S&P/TSX composite index declined 71.86 points to 15,212.75 as energy stocks retreated after a sharp run-up in oil prices came to halt while financials declined ahead of earnings news from Canada’s big banks next week.
The minutes from the Fed’s latest interest rate meeting showed officials were concerned about dropping the word “patient” to describe how long they were willing to wait to hike rates, fearing that could cause an overreaction in financial markets.
Some Fed officials noted that wage growth has remained weak even as the unemployment rate has declined. Others noted that inflation remains below the Fed’s two per cent target.
Analysts have said that a string of strong economic reports has made it difficult for the Fed not to raise rates from near zero, where they have been since the financial collapse of 2008, as early as June.
The Canadian dollar lost 0.28 of a U.S. cent to 80.53 cents.
Disappointing industrial production data and a drop in U.S. wholesale prices by a record amount in January helped keep New York mainly in the red.
The Dow Jones industrials fell 17.73 points to 18,029.85, the Nasdaq gained 7.09 points to 4,906.36 and the S&P 500 index was off 0.66 of a point at 2,099.68.
Meanwhile, traders awaited an official proposal from Greece to extend a bailout program that would keep the country solvent and within the euro currency bloc. The Greek plan would involve extending the 240-billion-euro loan agreement that has kept the country afloat since 2010 — but likely without the same commitments to austerity measures that secured other bailout funds. Eurozone finance officials will meet Thursday to discuss the request.
Greece’s creditors in the 19-country eurozone had given Greece until the end of the week to request an extension of the bailout agreement. After that, emergency liquid assistance (ELA) from the European Central Bank will likely dry up.
The TSX energy sector was down 2.35 per cent as the March crude contract fell $1.39 to US$52.14 a barrel after three days of gains.
Cenovus Energy Inc. (TSX:CVE) lost $1.17 to C$22.12 as it said that it’s raising $1.5 billion through the sale of 67.5 million common shares priced at $22.25 each in a move aimed at shoring up its balance sheet in the face of plummeting oil prices.
Financials were down one per cent.
April gold faded $8.40 to US$1,200.20 an ounce, but the gold sector was up 2.6 per cent.
The metals and mining sector rose 1.65 per cent while March copper gained three cents to US$2.61 a pound.