Business
Cooling off for Markets
Cooling off for Markets
About this update from Hudbay Minerals Inc
[{"type":"text","content":"\nCooling off for Markets\n\nAwaiting word from Fed, Treasury\n Mar. 24, 2009 (Baystreet.ca) -- 10:27 am EST\nThe Toronto stock market retreated this morning, a day after surging in reaction to a major energy-sector deal and a U.S. government plan to resolve bad debts at American banks. New York markets also backed off as traders took some profits after recent major gains. The S&P/TSX Composite Index tailed off 120.03 points in the first half-hour of trading to 8,838.48. The TSX financial sector, which had surged 34% from the March 9 trough, was down this morning. TD Bank declined $1.00 to $44.50 and National Bank fell $1.49 to $43.69. The energy sector also gave back amid weakening oil prices. Suncor Inc. declined $1.53 to $29.21 and EnCana Corp. lost $1.32 to $54.18. The Toronto gold sector was down, as Goldcorp Inc. moved $1.34 lower to $40.48. The base metals sector pulled back, with Teck Cominco Ltd. down 35 cents to $6.29. A slate of directors put forward by dissident shareholders of HudBay Minerals Inc. is poised to seize control of the mining company after the incumbent board failed to win enough support in a bitter proxy battle. HudBay shares dipped two cents to $5.78. The Canadian dollar was 0.15 cents lower to 81.60 cents U.S. ON BAYSTREET Of the 13 TSX subgroups, all but one were in negative country, gold was off 4%, followed by materials, down 3% and energy stocks, 2.8% worse off. Only utilities proved intrepid and rose 0.4%. The TSX Venture Exchange gave back 6.06 points to 917.97, while the Nasdaq Canada Index subsided 9.41 to 452.60ON WALLSTREETThe Dow Jones Industrials average cooled off 34.09 points in the early going to 7,741.77. The S&P 500 index slid 5.55 points to 817.37, while the Nasdaq subsided 16.11 to 1,539.66Financial shares - leaders of the rally Monday - led the decline Tuesday, with Citigroup, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase among the losers.Investors are awaiting appearances by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner before a congressional hearing to testify over bonuses at American International Group Inc. They are expected to face questions on the bank-aid plan and are likely to ask Congress for legislation that would enable the government to dismantle a big financial player, like AIG, without causing the system to crumble. The May crude contract ...