The exhilarating run that sent Canadian stocks soaring in early 2011 has made the second half of the year feel like a tragedy for many investors.
North American stocks retreated at the start of trading on Wednesday, with commodity producers among the biggest drags on performance.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 37 points or 0.3 per cent, to 12,254. The broader S&P 500 fell 5 points or 0.4 per cent, to 1260 – threatening to end five consecutive days of gains. In Canada, the commodity-heavy S&P/TSX composite index fell 158 points or 1.3 per cent, to 11,768.
The decline comes as European stocks surrendered gains earlier in the day, following a successful Italian bond auction. U.S. index futures had been pointing to modest gains about an hour before trading began.
Barrick Gold Corp. fell 2.6 per cent, after the price of gold fell to $1,589 (U.S.) an ounce, down $6. Suncor Energy Inc. fell 2 per cent, even though the retreat in the price of crude oil held above $100 a barrel. Banks were also weak, with Royal Bank of Canada down 1.4 per cent.
Research In Motion Ltd., which has been in the spotlight recently over reports that a few large companies were entertaining thoughts in the summer about making a bid for the BlackBerry maker, rose 4.2 per cent.
Among U.S. stocks, Bank of America Corp. fell 1.6 per cent and Alcoa Inc. fell 1 per cent.
David Berman