TSX Ends Lower As Commodity Prices Tumble -- Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks ended lower for a third straight session on Wednesday, as commodity and mining stocks dropped as commodity prices plunged, with crude oil futures plummeting below $50 a barrel. Gold, mining and energy stocks were among the weakest performers, offsetting gains in industrial and healthcare sectors.

Markets in Europe ended in the red for a second consecutive session, after snapping a 9-day winning streak. The Greek parliament is preparing for another vote on the final bailout negotiations on Wednesday as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras seeks to close the third bailout deal that will offer up to EUR 86 billion debt, after Greece made payments due to the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank.

Markets in the United States also ended in negative territory on Wednesday, after a batch of earnings news from tech giants such as Apple and Microsoft weighed on investors.

In some upbeat economic news, a report from the National Association of Realtors on Wednesday showed U.S. existing home sales in June to have reached its highest level in over eight years, following a sharp increase in sales in the previous month.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index closed Wednesday at 14,307.12, down 69.12 points or 0.48 percent. The index scaled an intraday high of 14,361.01 and a low of 14,231.10.

On Tuesday, the index closed down 49.31 points or 0.34 percent, at 14,376.24. The index scaled an intraday high of 14,511.99 and a low of 14,335.76.

Gold futures dropped for a tenth straight session as the dollar strengthened against some major currencies and investors convinced the Federal Reserve will finally raise interest rates by the year end, diminishing gold's appeal as a hedge against inflation.

The Gold Index gained 0.33 percent, although gold for August delivery dropped $12.00 or 1.1 percent, to settle at $1,091.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange Wednesday.

Among gold stocks, Kinross Gold Corp. (K.TO) moved up 1.36 percent, Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) gained 0.94 percent, Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX.TO) fell 0.93 percent, and Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI.TO) moved up 1.44 percent.

IAMGOLD Corp. plunged 6.25 percent, while Royal Gold, Inc. (RGL.TO) dropped 0.48 percent. B2Gold Corp. (BTO.TO) fell 1.32 percent and Lake Shore Gold Corp. (LSG.TO) shed 1.69 percent.

The Capped Materials Index shed 0.93 percent, as Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. (POT.TO) fell 1.38 percent, Agrium Inc. (AGU.TO) fell 1.42 percent, and Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM.TO) added 0.66 percent.

Crude oil futures plunged on renewed concerns over a supply glut after official data from the Energy Information Administration showed crude stockpiles in the U.S. to have increased more than expected last week.

A weekly report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration showed U.S. crude oil inventories to have increased 2.5 million barrels in the week ended July 17, while analysts expected stocks to decline 1.9 million barrels. Total U.S. crude oil inventories were at 463.9 million barrels end last week.

The Energy Index fell 1.12 percent, with U.S. crude oil futures for September delivery, the most actively traded contract, plummeting $1.67 or 3.3 percent, to settle at $49.19 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Wednesday.

Among energy stocks, Suncor Energy Inc. (SU.TO) added 0.6 percent, while Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp. (PRE.TO) gained 1.45 percent. Crescent Point Energy Corp. (CPG.TO) dropped 3.80 percent, while Encana Corp. (ECA.TO) dipped 0.09 percent.

The Diversified Metals & Mining Index tumbled 2.30 percent, as First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM.TO) dived 4.43 percent, Teck Resources Limited (TCK-B.TO) dropped 2.53 percent, and HudBay Minerals (HBM.TO) fell 2.46 percent.

Sherritt International (S.TO) added 0.62 percent, while Lundin Mining Corp. (LUN.TO) dropped 1.72 percent.

The heavyweight Financial Index shed 0.38 percent, as National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) edged down 0.09 percent, Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) dropped 0.71 percent, and Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) surrendered 0.18 percent.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) inched up 0.03 percent, Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) declined 0.30 percent, and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) dropped 0.29 percent.

The Capped Health Care Index gained 0.36 percent as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (VRX.TO) added 0.24 percent, Extendicare Inc. moved up 0.93 percent, and Concordia Healthcare Corp. (CXR.TO) advanced 0.13 percent.

The Capped Information Technology Index inched up 0.12 percent, as Constellation Software (CSU.TO) added 2.64 percent and Descartes Systems Group (DSG.TO) gained 1.59 percent.

The Capped Telecommunication Index shed 1.22 percent, as Rogers Communication (RCI-B.TO) fell 0.95 percent, TELUS Corp. (T.TO) shed 0.77 percent, Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. slipped 1.84 percent, and BCE Inc. (BCE.TO) dropped 1.31 percent.

The Capped Industrials Index gathered 0.76 percent, with Bombardier Inc. (BBD-A.TO) shedding 5.59 percent, Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (CP.TO) gained 5.20 percent and Canadian National Railway dipped 0.08 percent.

BlackBerry (BB.TO) fell 1.08 percent, after agreeing to acquire AtHoc, a provider of secure, networked crisis communications. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Morneau Shepell (MSI.TO) gained 0.12 percent, after it agreed to acquire the U.S. health and welfare benefits administration business of Ceridian.

Canfor Corp. (CFP.TO) is dropped 4.78 percent, after reporting second quarter earnings that were well short of estimates.

In economic news, the National Association of Realtors on Wednesday said U.S. existing home sales climbed 3.2 percent to an annual rate of 5.49 million in June from a downwardly revised 5.32 million in May. Economists expected existing home sales to edge up to an annual rate of 5.40 million in June from the 5.35 million originally reported for the previous month.

Elsewhere, a leading economic index for the Chinese economy was up 1.0 percent in June, the Conference Board said on Wednesday. That follows the 1.1 percent increase in May and the 1.5 percent spike in April.

From Europe, UK households' finance outlook for July dropped to its lowest level in a year, a survey by Markit Economics and financial information provider Ipsos Mori revealed Wednesday. The household finance index rose to 45.3 in July from 43.8 in the previous month. A score below 50 suggests pessimism regarding finances among the U.K. households. However, the latest score was slightly above the average recorded in the second quarter this year.

The Bank of England unanimously decided to keep its monetary policy unchanged at the meeting held early this month, but more rate-setters moved closer to vote for a rate hike. The Monetary Policy Committee voted 9-0 to retain its key rate at a record low 0.50 percent and asset purchase program at GBP 375 billion.

French manufacturing confidence improved more-than-expected in July, after falling in the previous month, figures from the statistical office Insee showed Wednesday. The manufacturing confidence index rose to 102.0 in July from 100.0 in June. Economists expected the index to rise to 101.0. In May, the reading was 103.0.