Equities in Toronto faded by Thursday’s closing bell, as industrials and resource stocks lost some of their steam.
The S&P/TSX Composite let go of 49.02 points to close Thursday at 15,781.20.
The Canadian dollar gained 0.34 cents at 76.30 cents U.S.
Industrials took the biggest bruises, as Bombardier sank a penny to $2.25, while Air Canada dropped three cents to $13.64.
Materials listed lower as Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan moved into the red 77 cents, or 3.2%, to $23.69, while First Quantum Minerals took a hit 99 cents, or 6.5%, to $14.23.
In the tech field, BlackBerry lost 11 cents, or 1.2%, to $9.40, while Constellation Software got pummeled $4.57 to $630.44.
Consumer staples proved a beacon, as grocery behemoth Loblaw gained $2.13, or 3.1%, to $71.05. Rival Metro climbed 53 cents, or 1.3%, to $40.24.
Energy also did its bit to bring the index up, as Crescent Point Energy surged 23 cents, or 1.5%, to $15.73, and Baytex Energy gained four cents to $5.08.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada reported that average weekly earnings for Canadian non-farm workers grew 1% in December from the month before to $971.00, a hike of 1.2% from December 2015.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange stayed positive 2.72 points to 839.45
Eight of the 12 subgroups went south by the close, as industrials stumbled 1.2%, materials sank 1%, while information technology stocks dipped 0.8%.
The four gainers were led by consumer staples, ahead 1%, real-estate, stronger by 0.9%, and energy, bustling 0.7%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. equities closed mixed Thursday on the back of remarks made by newly-minted Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 34.72 points above Wednesday’s all-time high to 20,810.32, with Johnson & Johnson largely powering the gains
The S&P 500 poked ahead 0.99 points to 2,363.81, with utilities rising more than 1%.
The NASDAQ slid 25.12 points to 5,835.51, as the tech sector snapped a 15-day winning streak.
In corporate news, Tesla reported mixed quarterly results, topping revenue estimates but falling short of profit forecasts.
Meanwhile, Victoria's Secret parent company L Brands reported weak forward-looking guidance Wednesday after the close, sending its stock tanking more than 15%.
Weekly jobless claims remain near their lowest levels in more than 40 years.
Mnuchin told the media Thursday morning he wants to see "very significant" tax reform passed before Congress' August recess. The prospect of tax reform has been one of the key catalysts in the U.S. stock market's post-election rally, along with deregulation and government spending.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note gained, dropping yields to 2.38% from Wednesday’s 2.41%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices hiked 76 cents to $54.35 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained $16.50 to $1,249.80 U.S. an ounce.
