TSX Ends Notably Lower On Trade War Concerns

(RTTNews) - The Canadian stock market ended notably lower on Friday, dragged down by losses in energy and materials sections.

The mood in the market was quite bearish due to worries about escalating U.S.-China trade tensions and on reports that Canada's government officials have expressed concern that it may not be possible to work out a final North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) pact before the Friday deadline set by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has warned that if Canada and U.S. could not reach a deal, more tariffs on imports of Canadian cars will be imposed by his administration. Mexico and the U.S. had announced a bilateral deal earlier this week.

In an interview with Bloomberg News on Thursday, the U.S. President Donald Trump threatened that his administration intends to move ahead with plans to impose tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports as early as next week. It is widely expected that China will retaliate strongly.

Trump has also threatened that he would pull U.S. out from the World Trade Organization and said that European trade policies were "almost as bad as China."

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 108.67 points or 0.66% at 16,262.88, after scaling a high of 16,390.40 and a low of 16,252.38 intraday. On Thursday, the Index ended down 18.74 points, or 0.11%, at 16,371.55. For the week, the index shed about 0.57%.

The Capped Energy Index declined by 1.44%. ARC Resources (ARX.TO) declined by 4.1%, Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) ended 3.7% down, Crescent Point Energy (CPG.TO) ended lower by 3.3%, Imperial Oil (IMO.TO) shed 1.45%, Cenovus Energy (CVE.TO) declined by 2%, Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO) ended 1.9% down and Suncor Energy (SU.TO) eased by about 1%.

The Capped Materials Index ended 0.86% down. Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX.TO), Franco-Nevada Corporation (FNV.TO), Teck Resources (TECK.B.TO) and First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) shed 1.7 to 2%.

Among bank stocks, Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO), Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD.TO), Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) declined by 0.2 to 0.6%, while Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) ended lower by 1.1% and National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) ended modestly higher.

Consumer discretionary and consumer staples stocks were mostly weak, while a few healthcare stocks rebounded after previous session's setback. Information technology and industrials stocks turned in a mixed performance.

Stuart Olson Inc. (SOX.TO) announced the appointments of Raymond D. Crossley and David C. Filmon to its Board of Directors. Mr. Crossley and Mr. Filmon will join the Audit Committee, the company said. The stock ended 1.6% down.

Medical Facilities Corporation (DR.TO) announced that it has entered into an agreement providing for a new U.S. $150 million syndicated revolving credit facility. The stock edged up marginally.

In economic news, data released by Statistics Canada showed the industrial product price index declined 0.2% in July, led by lower prices for primary non ferrous metal products. Meanwhile, the raw materials price index rose 0.7%, due largely to higher prices for crude energy products.

In commodities, crude oil futures for October delivery ended down $0.45, or 0.6%, at $69.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, as traders weighed recent oil supply and demand reports and largely stayed wary of building up positions amid escalating trade war tensions.

Gold futures for December ended up $1.70, or 0.1%, at $1,206.70 an ounce.

Silver futures for December ended down $0.037, at $14.557 an ounce, while Copper futures settled at $2.6710 per pound, down $0.0465 from previous close.

The U.S. stock market ended roughly flat after showing a lack of direction during the session, after President Donald Trump warned that he could pull the United States out of the World Trade Organization.

Stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Friday. Major European markets also moved to the downside.

In economic news from Europe, Eurozone inflation eased to 2% in August from a more than five-year high of 2.1% in July, flash data from Eurostat revealed.

Another report showed that the Eurozone jobless rate stood at 8.2% in July, the same rate as seen in June, and in line with expectations, but down from 9.1% in July 2017. This was the lowest rate recorded in the euro area since November 2008.

Meanwhile, a measure reflecting the current economic situation in euro area decreased in August after rising in the previous month, results of a survey by the Bank of Italy and the Centre for Economic Policy Research showed.

Elsewhere in Europe, German retail sales growth eased more than expected in July, while France's consumer prices grew at a steady pace in August, separate reports showed. U.K. house prices decreased at the fastest pace since mid-2012 in August, the Nationwide Building Society said.