Business
TSX off on week
TSX off on week
About this update from Thomson Reuters Corporation
[{"type":"text","content":"\nTSX off on week\n\nMetals punished\n Jan. 12, 2010 (Baystreet.ca) -- The Toronto stock market slid almost 200 points mid-afternoon Tuesday, with commodity stocks bearing the brunt of the selloff as aluminum giant Alcoa Inc. delivered disappointing earnings and China moved to cool off a hot economy.\n\nThe S&P/TSX Composite Index ended the day down 126.95 points, or 1.1% to 11,820.18. \n\nThe Alcoa earnings raised worries that the economic recovery will be slower than expected while the Chinese action to curtail economic growth put pressure on commodity prices because of concerns about a possible slowing of demand.\n\nCommodity prices fell after the People's Bank of China increased the interest rate on its one-year bill by eight basis points to 1.84%.\n\nThe rise was the second undertaken in the interbank markets in a week and provided a further hint that more substantial interest rate increases could be in the offing as China's economic growth accelerates.\n\nWith plenty of money sloshing around, soaring real estate prices in Beijing, Shanghai and other major cities have reawakened fears that asset bubbles and inflation could set the Chinese economy spinning.\n\nChina also raised the ratio of reserves banks must hold by 0.5 percentage points, reflecting concerns over a possible rise in inflation this year as the country's economy rebounds.\n\nThe base metals sector was the biggest decliner in Toronto, as March copper lost nine cents to $3.35 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources stepped back $1.09 to $41.11 and HudBay Minerals fell 43 cents to $14.43.\n\nShares in Grande Cache Coal Corp. were down 71 cents to $6.07 after the company raised its 2010 production target to a range of between 1.6 million and 1.8 million tonnes of metallurgical coal, about 6% higher than its previous guidance.\n\nThe TSX energy sector lost ground, as Suncor Inc. moved down 71 cents to $37.87, while Canadian Natural Resources dropped 90 cents to $73.58.\n\nAmong gold issues, Barrick Gold Corp. faded $1.08 to $41.92 and Goldcorp Inc. backed off $1.31 to $42.54.\n\nBlue chips also joined in the selloff, with the financial sector down. CIBC lost 55 cents to $66.02 while Scotiabank fell 54 cents to $46.46.\n\nRailway stocks pushed the industrial sector down, with Canadian National Railways off 70 cents to $57.68 and Canadian Pacific Railways fell 23 cents to $56....