(Adds strategist quotes and details throughout; updates prices)
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TSX ends down 252.09 points, or 1.25%, at 19,990.17
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All of the TSX’s 10 main groups lose ground
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Energy sector falls 3.5%, matching decline in oil
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Pot stocks tumble; Canopy Growth ends 16.4% lower
TORONTO, Dec 6 (Reuters) – Canada’s main stock index
fell on Tuesday to a two-week low as lower oil prices weighed on
resource shares and investors braced for another interest rate
hike by the Bank of Canada.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index
ended down 252.09 points, or 1.25%, at 19,990.17, its
lowest closing level since Nov. 21.
“We are looking at a pretty broadbased decline,” said Colin
Cieszynski, chief market strategist at SIA Wealth Management.
“It says to me it is more related to general equity market
weakness and perhaps some concern that the (Canadian) central
bank is going to remain relatively hawkish.”
Wall Street benchmarks also fell as uncertainty around the
direction of Federal Reserve rate hikes and further talk of a
looming recession weighed on skittish investors.
Money markets are betting on a 25-basis-point increase when
the BoC meets to set policy on Wednesday but a slim majority of
economists in a Reuters poll expect a larger move.
All 10 of the TSX’s major sectors lost ground, including a
decline of 3.5% for the energy sector. That matched the decline
for U.S. crude prices, which settled at $74.25 a barrel,
as global demand concerns weighed.
Shares of Cenovus Energy Inc were down 3.6% as the
company forecast higher capital expenditure and production in
2023.
Heavily weighted financials fell 0.9%, while technology
ended 2.1% lower.
Pot stocks Canopy Growth and Tilray Brands
lost 16.4% and 12.7%, respectively, after rallying for
five straight sessions on expectations of a positive update on a
pivotal U.S. banking bill that could provide further legitimacy
to the sector.
(Reporting by Fergal Smith; Additional reporting by Shashwat
Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Will Dunham)
