MW: Mining, energy offset Research In Motion earnings
By Laura Mandaro, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Canadian stocks ended slightly lower Friday as a rally in tech shares led by Research In Motion Ltd. was offset by a drop in mining and energy stocks.
The S&P/TSX Composite index (CA:ISPTX 11,463, -9.66, -0.08%) finished down 9.6 points, or 0.1%, at 11,463. It finished with 0.1% weekly drop and is down 0.6% gain for the month of December so far.
The mining and metals sector lost 1.7%.
Barrick Gold Corp. (CA:ABX 41.50, +0.45, +1.10%) (ABX 39.25, -0.23, -0.58%) rose but shares of Teck Resources (CA:TCK.A 39.30, -0.58, -1.45%) slumped 1.5%.
In merger news, Denver, Co.-based Royal Gold (RGLD 48.11, -0.02, -0.04%) will pay CAD$749 million for Toronto-listed International Royalty Corp. (ROY 7.10, +0.27, +3.95%) , (ROY 7.10, +0.27, +3.95%) , whose shares gained 4%.
The S&P/TSX Capped information technology index (CA:ITTTK 28.78, +0.65, +2.31%) jumped 2.3%, notching the biggest gains, largely due to a 10% surge in RIM (CA:RIM 73.96, +6.91, +10.31%) shares.
The Waterloo, Ontario maker of BlackBerry devices said late Thursday that earnings for its fiscal third-quarter advanced 59% from the same period last year, surpassing analysts' estimates.
Revenue advanced by 41% as both smartphone shipments and subscriber growth also managed to beat previous forecasts. Read full story on RIM's results.
Its fourth-quarter forecast also exceeded analysts' predictions.
But energy firms also lost ground, as oil prices ended off earlier highs. A stronger dollar partly offset rumors of an Iranian incursion into an Iraqi oil field sparked concerns about oil supply.
Shares of gas producer EnCana Corp. (CA:ECA 32.37, -0.23, -0.71%) fell 0.7% and Talisman Energy (CA:TLM 18.96, -0.02, -0.11%) dropped 0.1%.
Among other notable movers, shares of jet maker Bombardier (CA:BBD.B 4.76, +0.06, +1.28%) gained 1.3%, while insurer Sun Life Financial (CA:SLF 29.99, +0.64, +2.18%) (SLF 28.34, +0.84, +3.06%) rose 2.2%.
Canada's loonie edged higher. One U.S. dollar bought C$1.065, down about 0.4%.
In the U.S., stocks finished with modest gains. The S&P 500 (SPX 1,102, +6.39, +0.58%) gained 6 points to 1,102, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU 10,331, +22.90, +0.22%) rose 20 points to 10,328.
