TSX Drifts Lower On Trade Concerns

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market ended notably lower on Tuesday, led by losses in energy, financial, healthcare and information technology shares.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced a new trade deal between the U.S., Mexico, and Canada to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement, but investors were largely reluctant to pick up stocks.Concerns over U.S.-China trade tensions, Brexit, Italy's huge deficit budget and an Italian policymaker's anti-euro remarks and Brexit weighed on the market.

After reaching a new trade deal with Canada and Mexico over the weekend, Trump said on Monday that it was "too early to talk" with China about the escalating trade dispute between the two countries. "Can't talk now because they're not ready," Trump said of China. "Because they have been ripping us for so many years, it doesn't happen that quickly."

In Italy, Claudio Borghi, the economic head of the ruling League party said, "I'm totally convinced that Italy would resolve most of its problems with its own currency." However, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte reaffirmed his country's commitment to the Euro.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 87.20 points, or 0.54%, at 16,017.23. The index touched a high of 16,087.29 and a low of 15,987.14 intraday. On Monday, the index ended up 31.29 points, or 0.19%, at 16,104.43.

The Capped Financial Index shed 0.66%. Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO), Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO), Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO), Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) and Canadian Imperial Bank Of Commerce (CM.TO) declined by 0.5% to 1.1%, while National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) edged up marginally.

The Capped Energy Index shed 1.84%. Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO), Encana Corporation (ECA.TO), Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO) and Husky Energy Inc. (HSE.TO) lost 2 to 3%.

The Capped Healthcare index eased by 3.6%. Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACB.TO) declined by 4.25%, Canopy Growth Corporation (WEED.TO) ended nearly 6.5% down and Aphria Inc. (APH.TO) tanked nearly 10%.

The Capped Information Technology Index declined nearly 2.5%. Shopify Inc. (SHOP.TO) and BlackBerry (BB.TO) ended more than 4% down, Descartes Systems Group Inc. (DSG.TO) ended 3.3% down, Kinaxis Inc. (KXS.TO) eased by 3.1% and CGI Group Inc. (GIB.A.TO) declined by 2.1%.

The Capped Materials Index gained nearly 1.5%. Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX.TO) gained more than 5%, Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO) gained nearly 4%, Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) advanced by 3.5% and Agnico Eagle Mines (AEM.TO) ended 5.2% up.

Fiera Capital Corporation (FSZ.TO) has provided an update on the advancement of the Firm's 2022 Strategic Plan. The objective of the 2022 Plan is to establish Fiera Capital, which has more than C$139 billion under management, as a top-tier, global, multi-strategy asset manager. The stock ended 0.4% down.

Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (MFI.TO) shares climbed up 6.2% after the company announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire VIAU Foods, a Canadian market leader in premium Italian cooked, dry-cured and charcuterie meats for a purchase price of $215 million, including $30 million in Maple Leaf stock.

Thomson Reuters Corp. (TRI.TO) ended lower by 1.1%. On Monday, the company announced the completion of the sale of a majority stake in its Financial & Risk unit to private equity firm Blackstone Group LP.

The U.S. market ended mixed, although the Dow reached a new record closing high. The lackluster performance on Wall Street came as traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves amid a quiet day on the U.S. economic front.

The European markets ended Tuesday's session firmly in the red, due to Brexit concerns and worries over the trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Concerns over the Italian budget also rattled the markets.

Asian markets ended mostly lower on Tuesday, weighed down by U.S.-China trade tensions.

In commodities, crude oil futures for November delivery ended down $0.07, or 0.09%, at $75.23 a barrel.

Natural gas futures for November gained $0.069, or 2.23%, to $3.163 per million btu.

Gold futures for December ended up $15.30, or 1.3%, at $1,207.00 an ounce, the highest settlement in nearly two weeks.

Silver futures for December ended up $0.186, at $14.693 an ounce, while Copper futures for December settled at $2.8065 per pound, gaining $0.0190 for the session.