TSX Retreats After Buoyant Start, Ends Lower For 4th Straight Day

(RTTNews) - Despite opening on a bright note and holding in positive territory for a long time, the Canadian stock market slipped and ended in the red on Tuesday, extending losses to a fourth successive day.

Renewed optimism about U.S.-China trade talks and higher crude oil prices set up a positive start for the market. However, stocks retreated midway through the session amid lingering concerns about global economy, oil's struggle to inch higher despite the recent production cut decision by OPEC and its allies, and uncertainty about Brexit and U.S.-China trade deal weighed on sentiment.

According to China's Commerce Ministry, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He spoke with U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. "Both sides exchanged views on putting into effect the consensus reached by the two countries' leaders at their meeting, and pushing forward the timetable and roadmap for the next stage of economic and trade consultations work," the ministry said in a statement.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index ended down 60.45 points, or 0.41%, at 14,667.83, after scaling a high of 14,957.81 and a low of 14,665.66 intraday. On Monday, the index closed down by 66.85 points, or 0.45%, at 14,728.28.

Energy stocks retreated after an early uptick. The Capped Energy Index ended down 1.48%. Suncor Energy (SU.TO), Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Husky Energy (HSE.TO) and ARC Resources (ARX.TO) declined by 2% to 3.4%.

Encana Corporation (ECA.TO) and PrairieSky Royalty (PSK.TO) ended lower by more than 1%, while Vermilion Energy (VET.TO) gained about 1% and Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) advanced by 2.1%.

Cenovus Energy (CVE.TO) rose about 3.5% earier in the session, driven by an announcement from the company that it plans to invest between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion in 2019, with the majority of the budget going to sustain base production at its Foster Creek and Christina Lake oil sands operations. The company said it also plans to complete construction of the Christina Lake phase G expansion. However, the stock pared a substantial part of its gains and settled just 0.6% up in the end.

The Consumer Discretionary Index shed about 0.9%. Dollarama Inc. (DOL.TO) declined by about 3%. Restaurant Brands International Inc. (QSR.TO), Gildan Actiwear Inc. (GIL.TO), Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC.A.TO), Canada Goose Holdings Inc. (GOOS.TO) and BRP Inc. (DOO.TO) lost 1% to 2%, while Magna International Inc. (MG.TO) gained 1%.

Among bank stocks, Toronto-Dominion Bank and National Bank of Canada edged down marginally, while Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO), Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO), Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CM.TO) declined by 0.4% - 1.2%.

In the materials section, Nutrien (NTR.TO) declined by 2.3%, Barrick Gold Corporation (ABX.TO) shed 1.78%, Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) ended lower by 1.55% and CCL Industries Inc. (CCL.B.TO) closed down by about 2%.

First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) jumped 5.15%, Teck Resources (TECK.B.TO) gained nearly 4% and Kirkland Lake Gold (KL.TO) added 2.1%.

The Capped Healthcare Index gained 2.87%. Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACB.TO) gained about 3.4%, Canopy Growth Corporation (WEED.TO) spurted 6.25% and Aphria Inc. (APHA.TO) ended stronger by nearly 9%.

MTY Food Group Inc. (MTY.TO) announced today that one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries has signed an agreement to acquire the assets of gourmet burger restaurants chain, South St. Burger, which has 26 franchised and 14 corporate restaurants in operation. The network has generated over $28 million in system sales in the last 12 months.

MTY also announced that one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries has acquired substantially most of the assets of Casa Grecque for a consideration of $22.35 million. The stock ended marginally down, after having rallied sharply early on in the session.

Asian markets ended mixed with investors largely making cautious moves amid U.S.-China trade tensions, Brexit uncertainty and crude oil's slide.

The European markets bounced back, regaining some of their recent losses. Positive German economic data and renewed optimism about the trade talks between the U.S. and China fueled the recovery.

After calling off a crucial House of Commons vote, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May will now meet European leaders and EU officials in the hope of clinching a better Brexit deal.

In economic news, German investor confidence rose strongly in December, defying expectations for a modest weakening, but caution prevailed as financial analysts' assessment of the current economic situation again deteriorated sharply due to sluggish economic growth and uncertainties linked to global trade and Brexit.

The ZEW Indicator of Economic Sentiment for Germany rose 6.6 points to reach minus 17.5 points in December, results of a survey by the Centre for European Economic Research, or ZEW, showed on Tuesday. Economists had forecast the index, which reflects analysts' economic expectations for the next 6 months, to worsen further to minus 25.

UK wages rose at the fastest pace in a decade in the three months to October, suggesting that real pay growth is turning sustainable and contribute to economic growth if a "no-deal" Brexit is avoided.

U.S. stocks ended mixed after a volatile session. While the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.2%, the Dow edged down by 0.2% and the S&P 500 ended lower by less than a tenth of a percent. The volatility on the day came as traders waffled between optimism and skepticism about a potential trade agreement between the U.S. and China.

In U.S. economic news, a report from the Labor Department showed an unexpected uptick in producer prices in the month of November. The report said its producer price index for final demand inched up by 0.1% in November after climbing by 0.6% in October. Economists had expected prices to be unchanged.

In commodities, crude oil futures for January ended up $0.65, or 1.3%, at $51.65 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Gold futures for February ended down $2.20, or 0.2%, at $1,247.20 an ounce.

Silver futures for March settled at $14.628 an ounce, up $0.023 from Monday's close, while Copper futures for March ended up $0.047, at $2.767 per pound.