TSX Snaps 12-day Winning Streak, Ends Notably Lower

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market ended notably lower on Tuesday, snapping a 12-day winning streak, as worries about global growth resurfaced. Energy stocks led the market down, losing significant ground on falling crude oil prices.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its forecast for global growth, citing a range of triggers beyond escalating trade tensions.

These potential triggers include a "no-deal" Brexit for the U.K. and a deeper-than-envisaged slowdown in China, the IMF said.

The IMF now projects a 3.5% growth rate worldwide for 2019 and 3.6% for 2020, down 0.2 and 0.1 percentage points below its last forecasts in October.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 120.40 points, or 0.78%, at 15,233.76, after scaling a low of 15,160.50 and a high of 15,285.22 in the session.

On Monday, the Canadian benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended up 50.33 points, or 0.33%, at 15,354.16, extending gains to a twelfth successive session.

Apart from energy stocks, several stocks from industrials section ended notably lower. Consumer discretionary, information technology and materials stocks eased, while financial, healthcare, telecommunications and consumer staples stocks ended mixed.

The Capped Energy Index declined 3.5%. Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO) ended down 5.8% and Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) declined 4.3%.

Suncor Energy (SU.TO), Cenovus Energy (CVE.TO), Encana Corporation (ECE.TO), Vermilion Energy (VET.TO), Husky Energy (HSE.TO), PrairieSky Royalty (PSK.TO) and ARC Resources (ARX.TO) lost 1.6 to 3%.

Among other stocks in the Energy space, MEG Energy Corp. (MEG.TO) shed 5.7% and Baytex Energy Corp. (BTE.TO) declined by 6%.

The Capped Materials Index ended 0.5% down. Nutrien (NTR.TO) and Teck Resources (TECK.B.TO) declined by about 2% and 2.8%, respectively. Kirkland Lake Global (KL.TO) jumped 4.6% and Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) advanced by nearly 2.5%.

Among bank stocks, Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO) ended nearly 0.7% down and National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) declined by 1%. Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) gained 0.25%, while Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO), Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) ended flat.

The Capped Industrials Index ended 1.15% down. Canadian National Railway (CNR.TO) ended 3.2% down, while SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., Air Canada (AC.TO) and Bombardier Inc. (BBD.B.TO) ended lower by 1 to 1.7%. Thomson Reuters Corporation (TRI.TO) gained 1.1%.

Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACB.TO) lost 1.4%, Aphria (APHA.TO) shed nearly 5% and Hexo Corp. (HEXO.TO) ended 6.85% down.

On the economic front, data from Statistics Canada said wholesale sales fell 1% in November to $63.0 billion, more than offsetting the 0.7% increase in October. The report said sales were down in five of seven sub-sectors.

According to another report, manufacturing sales declined 1.4% to $57.3 billion in November, falling for the second straight month. StatsCan said the decline in November mainly reflected lower sales of petroleum and coal products.

In its latest report, the IMF lowered its forecasts for global economic growth to 3.5% in 2019 and 3.6% in 2020, 0.2 and 0.1 percentage points below last October's projections.

An escalation of trade tensions and a worsening of financial conditions are key sources of risk to the outlook, the IMF said.

The IMF also expressed concerns about a bigger than expected slowdown in Chinese growth, the Brexit cliffhanger, and the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.

Asian markets ended weak and European markets too ended mostly lower on global growth worries. On the Brexit front, the U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May's much-anticipated "plan B" looked like a tweaked version of her Plan A, which suffered a historic parliamentary defeat last week. Among the major markets in the region, the U.K., Germany and France ended notably lower.

Investors were also following news from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Monday, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde noted risks to the global economy are increasingly intertwined.

In commodities, crude oil futures for March, the most active contract, ended down $1.03, or 1.9%, at $53.01 a barrel.

Gold futures for February ended up $0.80, at $1,283.40 an ounce, after falling to a low of $1,276.70 earlier in the session.

Silver futures for March settled at $15.325 an ounce, down $0.074 from previous close. Copper futures for March ended down $0.0595, at $2.6595 per pound.