Canada's equity benchmark finished lower on Wednesday, pressured by declines in Materials, Energy and Telecoms stocks that pushed the S&P/TSX Composite down 0.55% at the close in Toronto.
The session produced a mix of outsized movers: technology and service names delivered notable gains while several resource companies posted sharp losses.
Top performers
- Shopify Inc (SHOP) climbed 6.12%, a rise of 9.38 points, to finish at 162.59.
- Boyd Group Services Inc (BYD) added 5.81%, gaining 7.44 points to close at 135.60.
- Waste Connections Inc (WCN) advanced 4.61%, up 10.43 points to 236.88 in late trade.
Lagging names
- NovaGold Resources Inc (NG) declined 14.40%, a drop of 1.48 points, to 8.80 at the close.
- HudBay Minerals Inc (HBM) fell 9.41%, slipping 3.39 points to end the day at 32.65.
- Seabridge Gold Inc. (SEA) was down 8.65%, losing 3.33 points to trade at 35.16.
On the Toronto Stock Exchange overall, decliners outnumbered advancers by 588 to 349, while 82 issues finished unchanged, indicating broad selling pressure.
The S&P/TSX 60 VIX, a gauge of implied volatility for options on the S&P/TSX Composite, rose 0.78% to 15.41, pointing to a modest uptick in expected near-term market swings.
Commodities and currencies
Commodity markets showed weakness alongside equities. Gold futures for August delivery fell 3.20%, a decrease of 132.80, to $4,016.60 a troy ounce. In energy markets, crude oil for August delivery dropped 4.55% or 3.33 to $69.88 a barrel, while the September Brent contract lost 4.39% or 3.37 to trade at $73.43 a barrel.
On the currency front, the Canadian dollar was effectively flat against major peers: the CAD/USD was unchanged at 0.70, while the CAD/EUR held steady at 0.62. The US Dollar Index Futures was reported up 0.19% at 101.36.
The session highlighted a divergence between individual winners and laggards, with commodity-sensitive sectors and select miners facing pressure amid declines in oil and gold prices, while some service and technology-linked names showed resilience.