Business
TSX gives back gains
TSX gives back gains
About this update from Thomson Reuters Corporation
[{"type":"text","content":"\nTSX gives back gains\n\nNew highs for U.S. stocks\n Apr. 12, 2010 (Baystreet.ca) -- The Toronto stock market dipped slightly lower Monday afternoon amid deal-making that will see a major Chinese company buy a piece of the Canadian oilsands sector.\n\nThe S&P/TSX Composite Index surrendered 28.18 points to end the session at 12,148.66\n\nConocoPhillips announced Monday it plans to sell its 9.03% interest in Syncrude Canada Ltd. to China's Sinopec for $4.65 billion.\n\nShares in Syncrude's largest partner -- Canadian Oil Sands Trust, which owns a 37% stake in the project -- jumped $1.47 to $32.17, giving the company a market value of more than $16 billion.\n\nOn the TSX Venture Exchange, Petro Vista Energy Corp. shares surged eight cents or 37.2% to 28.5 cents following a positive drilling report on its Tartaruga Block in Brazil. It expects to initiate production within the next two weeks.\n\nThe consumer staples sector made headway as shares in convenience store owner Alimentation Couche Tarde improved by 80 cents, or 4.2%, to $19.70. The stock ran ahead 4% Friday after it announced a $1.8-billion U.S. cash offer for American convenience store chain Casey's General Stores.\n\nOther commodity sectors turned negative. The TSX global gold sector was off as Barrick Gold Corp. declined 52 cents to $40.97.\n\nGammon Gold Inc. shares were ahead 51 cents to $7.73 after it said two separate problems at its Ocampo mine in Mexico had a negative impact on its first-quarter financial results and pulled down production. The Halifax-based company said Monday that 36,546 gold equivalent ounces were produced in the quarter versus 41,997 ounces in the same period a year earlier.\n\nThe base metals sector was slightly lower while May copper shed three cents at $3.56 U.S. a pound.\n\nIn other corporate news, Telus Corp. shares dropped two cents to $37.78 as it said it plans to expand the scope of its broadband services in Quebec by investing $250 million in the province this year.\n\nLorus Therapeutics Inc. was a major advancer, up 2.5 cents, or 33.3% to 10 cents. The biopharmaceutical company said Monday that the production of the first clinical batch of its anti-cancer drug candidate LOR-253 has been successfully completed.\n\nOrsu Metals Corp. said Friday it has signed a deal to raise up to $28 million that will be used to fund exploration and ...