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Stocks fall on debt impasse(Baystreet Stock Market Update (Canada) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TD, Suncor in focus Toronto's main stock market index drifted lower on Tuesday morning as lackluster Canadian earnings and a stalemate in U.S. debt talks kept many investors on the sidelines. The S&P/TSX Composite Index dropped 87.45 points to greet noon at 13,348.50 The Canadian dollar gained 0.33 cents to 105.95 cents U.S. Toronto-Dominion Bank, down 0.8% at $79.57, and Suncor Energy, down 0.8% at $39.13, were among the biggest laggards. Canadian National Railway was the heaviest decliner, down 2.4% at $73.42, after its report of a modest increase in quarterly earnings on Monday failed to impress investors. Rogers Communication was close behind, dropping 4.5 % to $36.12 after reporting an almost flat profit as it fought hard to keep its lead position in Canada's wireless sector. Inmet Mining sank 5.3 % to $66.26, after the Canadian base metal miner reported disappointing quarterly results and cut its full-year production outlook due to operational problems. Among the gainers, BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion rose 1.4% to $25.55 following a sharp selloff in the previous session. ON BAYSTREET The TSX Venture Exchange lost 12.81 points to 2,023.82, while the Nasdaq Canada index picked up 4.03 points to 558.93 In Toronto, all but one of the 14 subgroups were pointed downward. Telecoms tailed off 2%, industrials suffered 1.3% and financials fell 0.8%. The lone gainer was in information technology, ahead 0.6%, ON WALLSTREET In New York, stocks slid lower on Tuesday, as investors work through another wave of corporate earnings and continue to await progress on a debt ceiling deal. The Dow Jones Industrials fell 54.61 points at midday to 12,538.20 The S&P 500 dropped 1.37 points to 1,336.06. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 4.04 points to 2,846.84 The Dow was dragged lower by industrial conglomerate 3M, which sank 4% in early trading, despite the company reporting earnings and revenue that were mostly in-line with analysts' expectations. Investors were torn between two forces Tuesday: an earnings season that has been generally positive, and concerns tied to the continuing battle over the United States' debt ceiling. Of the S&P 500 companies who have reported their quarterly results so far -- 75% have beaten expectations, according to data by Thomson Reuters. The rhetoric over the debt ceiling ratcheted up further late Monday, after President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner each used primetime television addresses to make their case to the American people. The president singled out House Republicans for intransigence, and said the political showdown is "no way to run the greatest country on Earth." But at the end of the night, there was no clear legislative path forward. Months of increasingly tense negotiations have failed to bring a deal that can win approval from all of the necessary players -- the Republican-led House, Democratic-led Senate and the White House. Netflix shares sank 10% on Tuesday, making it the worst performer on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. The video rental company spent much of its Monday earnings release discussing problems -- namely, a recent price hike that launched thousands of online complaints. British oil company BP reported a profit of $5.6 billion U.S. -- a stark contrast to last year's second-quarter loss of $17.2 billion U.S., when the company was struggling with the Gulf oil spill. Shares slid 2%. Ford reported better than expected quarterly earnings of $2.4 billion U.S., as sales climbed 13% to $35.5 billion U.S. Shares gained 2% in morning trading. International shipping company UPS -- often considered an economic bellwether -- also posted better-than-expected earnings, as strong shipping volumes in China and Europe helped offset flat sales here in the U.S. Video game publisher Electronic Arts and online retailer Amazon.com are scheduled to report quarterly results after the closing bell. Economically speaking, the S&P Case-Shiller home price index rose a better-than-expected 1% in May versus the 4.4% decline that economists had forecasted. New home sales dropped to an annual rate of 312,000, according to a report from the Commerce Department. The data was slightly worse than the 325,000 units economists had predicted. The Conference Board said consumer confidence rose to a reading of 59.5 in July, up from 57.6 in June. Economists had expected consumer confidence to slide to 55.3. Bond prices improved Monday, pushing the yield on benchmark 10-year notes down to 2.95% from Monday's 3.00%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions Oil for August delivery regained 28 cents to $97.98 U.S. a barrel. Gold futures for August delivery fell $1.60 to $1,610.70 U.S. an ounce. © 1998 - 2011 Baystreet.ca Media Corp. All rights reserved. |