Business
Rally stifled
Rally stifled
About this update from Genesis Ai Corp
[{"type":"text","content":"\nRally stifled\n\nChina not boosting stimulus yet\n Mar. 5, 2009 (Baystreet.ca) -- 12:32 pm EST\nStocks fell hard Thursday after a litany of grim developments: GM said its survival is in doubt, bank shares took a beating and Citigroup broke the buck.Adding to the global woes: China defied expectations by failing to boost its economic stimulus program.Toronto's S&P/TSX composite index was still down 132 points at noon time, to 7,682.76. There had been hopes that China would use the start of the National People's Congress' annual session to announce new economic measures, in addition to the promised spending of $585 billion U.S. outlined in November.But there was a sense of letdown after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Thursday the government would help the world's third-largest economy grow by 8% this year, but stopped short of promising new measures.The financial sector was down after undergoing a battering earlier in the week in the wake of a $62-billion U.S. loss at insurer American International Group, a U.S. corporate record.Royal Bank declined 85 cents to $29.73 and CIBC shares were down $1.75 to $37.88 after it announced that it will raise up to $1.6 billion in a Tier 1 debt issue. It said that completion would take the bank's pro-forma Tier 1 capital ratio to about 11.5%.Canadian Western Bank reported Thursday a first-quarter profit of $25.6 million, down 1% from a year-earlier $25.9 million, as the fallout of the economic downturn continued to pressure its earnings. Its shares gave back 32 cents to $10.28.The TSX energy sector lost amid falling oil prices and earnings reports from some of the oilpatch's heavyweights - while another company filed for creditor protection.Natural gas explorer and producer Canadian Superior Energy Inc. says it has filed an application with the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta for protection from creditors under the federal Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act. Its shares plunged 23 cents to 26 cents.Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. shares rose $1.44 to $39.98 after it said Thursday it was reducing its 2009 capital spending budget by $800 million in anticipation of a turbulent year marked by low commodity prices. The Calgary-based oil and gas company recorded net earnings of $1.8 billion during the fourth quarter, up from year-earlier profits of $798 million.Canadian Natural also said it...