Canadian Stocks Retreated As Commodity Prices Fell - Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market declined for the bulk of the morning Tuesday, before settling into a sideways pattern. A pullback in commodity prices weighed on shares of gold and energy stocks.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index closed down by 88.85 points or 0.54 percent, at 16,355.54. The index scaled an intraday high of 16,464.93 and a low of 16,328.91.

The Gold Index weakened by 2.06 percent Tuesday, after prices of the precious metal dropped to around $1207 an ounce.

The drop in gold prices also weighed on the Capped Materials Index, which surrendered 1.04 percent.

The Energy Index decreased by nearly 1 percent, after crude oil prices slipped to around $68.50 per barrel. Traders will be watching for the release of U.S. inventory data Wednesday morning.

The Capped Healthcare Index also sank by 4.15 percent.

The Capped Financial Index slid 0.24 percent. Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) dropped 1.80 percent. The company reported a third-quarter profit of $1.94 billion or $1.55 per diluted share, down from $2.10 billion or $1.66 per diluted share a year ago. Despite the drop in earnings, the bank raised its quarterly dividend by three cents to 85 cents per share.

Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) gained 0.18percent. The company reported a net income of $1,536 million for the third quarter, up 11% compared to year-ago quarter. Adjusted net income was $1,565 million in the third quarter, up 14% year-on-year, the bank said.