Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz saying that the nation’s economy is in “good shape” didn’t translate into a positive day on Bay Street.
A slide in oil prices combined with struggles among energy and bank stocks pulled the TSX 25 points lower, as Canada’s stock exchange fell into the red for just the third time in 2019.
And while just five of the TSX’s 11 main sectors dipped, among the decliners were the heavyweight energy and financials sectors.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Bloomberg TV, Poloz said that developments in Canada’s housing market along with the impact of falling oil prices and global trade tensions will determine the central bank’s decision on any future interest rate hikes.
In New York, the Dow was 171 points higher, bolstered by healthy gains from IBM and Procter & Gamble after the two companies reported better-than-expected earnings reports.
IBM’s stock shot up 8.4 percent after the tech giant’s full-year results topped estimates.
And P&G’s shares rose 4.8 percent after the consumer giant reported solid second quarter fiscal year 2019 net sales of $17.4 billion.
The corporation’s sales report and earnings also exceeded Wall Street analysts’ expectations.
The Dow rose into triple digit territory despite the usual suspects – continued uncertainty over U.S./China trade negotiations and the longest government shutdown in American history – continuing to weigh sentiment on Wall Street.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq crept five points higher despite losses in Netflix and Tesla, among others.
Oil prices fluctuated before slipping 62 cents to $52.39 US a barrel. Investors are balancing a drop in U.S. shale output and deliberate production cuts from the world’s largest exporters with concerns over a flagging global economy, which is impacting demand.
The loonie strengthened slightly, moving 5/100ths of a cent higher to $0.7492 US, while gold was up $1.40 to $1,282 an ounce.
