Stocks in Toronto, which had been stars throughout January, took a step backward on the first day of February, as losses in the gold and materials sectors trumped gains among health and tech stocks.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index slid 34.29 points to finish Friday and the week at 15,506.31
The Canadian dollar gained 0.21 cents higher to 76.38 cents U.S.
Gold stocks took some blows Friday, as Barrick Gold lost 27 cents, or 1.5%, to $17.32, while Kirkland Lake Gold dipped four cents to $42.23.
Teck Resources was down $1.30, or 4.1%, to $30.70, after the diversified miner warned that its fourth-quarter profit will be significantly below market estimates, hurt by "disappointing" business at its energy and trail operation units.
First Quantum backed off 39 cents, or 2.6%, to $14.82.
In the consumer discretionary area, Magna International withered 77 cents, or 1.1%, to $68.77, while Hudson’s Bay Company ditched four cents to $8.10.
Health-care issues advanced, helped by a rally in shares of cannabis producers. The largest percentage gainers on the TSX were Aphria, which surged $1.18, or 10.3%, to $12.59, and Cronos Group, which rose $1.72, or 6.7%, to $27.47.
Tech shares showed some hope, as BlackBerry fought its way back to a neutral position, neither gaining nor losing at 10.58. Shopify carried the sector on its back, gaining $1.97 to $223.15.
Among consumer staples, Saputo was better by 44 cents, or 1.1%, to $38.96.
The headline seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Canada Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index fell back to 53.0 in January from 53.6 in December. Although still above the crucial 50.0 no-change threshold, the latest reading pointed to the weakest improvement in overall business conditions since December 2016.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 0.14 points to 622.86
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower, as gold dulled in price 1%, while materials fell 0.9%, and consumer discretionary stocks wilted 0.8%
Health-care stocks popped 1.8%, while information technology gathered 0.5%, and consumer staples picked up 0.3%
ON WALLSTREET
The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted slight gains on Friday after the U.S. government released jobs growth data that easily beat expectations.
The 30-stock index came off its highs, but was still positive 64.22 points to 25,063.89, as Chevron, Exxon Mobil and Merck all closed higher.
The S&P 500 added 2.43 points to 2,706.53, as gains in the energy and tech sectors offset losses in consumer discretionary.
The NASDAQ Composite drooped 17.87 points to 7,263.87, as Amazon shares fell.
The moves Friday come after Wall Street posted its biggest January gain since 1987 on Thursday. Strong earnings and an indication from the Federal Reserve that it will pause rate hikes boosted investor confidence. The S&P 500 ended January up more than 7%.
Wall Street also digested key earnings from companies like Amazon, Merck and Exxon Mobil. On Thursday, Amazon reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the fourth quarter.
However, the company issued weaker-than-expected revenue guidance for the first quarter and warned about increasing investments.
These concerns pushed Amazon shares down by 5%.
Merck, meanwhile, posted a better-than-expected profit and revenue, sending its shares up by 2.7%. Exxon Mobil shares rose 3.6% after the company reported better-than-expected earnings. Chevron also gained 3.2% on a stronger-than-forecast profit.
So far, more than 45% of S&P 500 have reported earnings this season. Of those companies, 68.1% have topped analyst expectations.
The stateside economy added 304,000 jobs in January, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists expected the U.S. economy to have added 170,000 jobs in January.
The report follows a 35-day U.S. government shutdown. It also marks the 100th straight month of jobs growth. Investors had been awaiting the report in search of clues about the state of the economy.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury dropped sharply, raising yields to 2.69% from Thursday’s 2.64%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $1.49 to $55.28 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices sank $2.80 to $1,322.40 U.S. an ounce.
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