TSX Ends Sharply Lower On Interest Rate Concerns

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks fell sharply on Thursday, weighed down by concerns the Fed will raise interest rate hike later this month after data showed much stronger than expected growth in U.S. private sector employment in the month of June.

Weak commodity prices weighed as well.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended with a loss of 293.20 points or 1.46% at 19,810.69, after falling to a low of 19,757.60 intraday.

Selling was so widespread that all the sectoral indices closed in negative territory. Healthcare, energy, technology, materials, financials and consumer staples shares were among the major losers.

Aritzia Inc (ATZ.TO) tumbled nearly 6%. Docebo Inc (DCBO.TO), Teck Resources (TECK.A.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Shopify Inc (SHOP.TO) and Cargojet (CJT.TO) ended lower by 3 to 4%.

Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.TO), West Fraser Timber (WFG.TO), Fairfax Financial Holdings (FFH.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), Canadian National Railway (CNR.TO), Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO) and Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO) lost 1 to 2.7%.

Badger Infrastructure Solutions (BDGI.TO), Softchoice Corporation (SFTC.TO) and Magna International (MG.TO) moved up sharply.

In economic news, data from Statistics Canada showed Canada posted a trade deficit of C$3.44 billion in May 2023, shifting from a downwardly revised surplus of C$0.89 billion in the prior month.

Exports slumped by 3.8% in the month to an 18-month low of C$61.5 billion, while imports rose by 3% over a month to $64.97 billion.