Stocks in Toronto knew the highest heights Thursday morning before a rash of selling brought the index into minus country by the closing bell.
The S&P/TSX Composite lost 146.98 points to 21,058.18.
The Canadian dollar was unchanged at 79.93 cents U.S.
Consumer stocks proved the biggest anchor on the index Thursday, with Magna International swooning $4.65, or 4.4%, to $101.34, while Martinrea International lost 45 cents, or 4.1%, to $10.55.
Gold stocks lost their lustre, with Eldorado Gold stumbling 47 cents, or 3.8%, to $11.94, while New Gold faltered nine cents, or 4%, to $2.16.
In other resource stock, Endeavour Silver shed 18 cents, or 3.1%, to $5.65, while Agnico Eagle Mines dipped $2.24, or 3.3%, to $65.66.
Industrials tried to steer the ship upward, with Richelieu Hardware hiking $3.65, or 8.2%, to $48.31, while Lifeworks picked up 41 cents, or 1.5%, to $27.28.
Utilities also gained, with Boralex ahead 83 cents, or 2.7%, to $32.13, while Innergex Renewable progressed 35 cents, or 2%, to $17.81.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange plunged 10.52 points, or 1.2%, to 890.35.
All but two of the 12 TSX subgroups were lower, with consumer discretionary tumbling 2.2%, while gold and materials each lost 1.8%.
The two gainers proved to be industrials, eking up 0.2%, and utilities, topping breakeven by only 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks moved lower on Thursday, giving up their sharp gains from earlier in the session, as Wall Street continues to struggle this year in a rising interest rate environment.
The Dow Jones Industrials dropped 313.26 points to 34,715.39.
The S&P 500 sank 50.03 points, or 1.1%, to 4,482.73.
The NASDAQ swooned 186.23 points, or 1.3%, to 14,154.02.
For the week, the Dow is down about 1.2%. The S&P 500 has lost 1.4% since Monday. The NASDAQ is the biggest loser, down 1.8% this week.
Peloton tanked 20% on news it is temporarily halting production of its connected fitness products as consumer demand wanes
Technology stocks, like Zoom Video and Tesla, led markets higher for most of the day on Thursday. However, many lost steam towards the
end of the session. Netflix dipped before its quarterly earnings slated for after the bell.
Several earnings reports moved stocks on Thursday. Dow component Travelers posted beats on the top and bottom lines while American Airlines also beat estimates but lowered guidance. Travelers rose 4%.
United Airlines shares fell 1% after the company reported its quarterly results and warned that omicron has dented bookings and will delay its pandemic recovery.
Unemployment data on Thursday signaled the surge in omicron could be hurting the recovery.
Jobless claims for the week ended Jan. 15 totaled 286,000 for the week, their highest level since October. The read was well above the Dow Jones estimate of 225,000 and a substantial gain from the previous week’s 231,000.
Prices for 10-year Treasurys gained strength, lowering yields to 1.82% from Wednesday’s 1.86%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dwindled 67 cents to $86.29 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices retreated $4.30 to $1,838.90 U.S. an ounce.