The TSX opened lower Tuesday as the U.S. dollar rose against the euro, sparking a sell-off in commodities.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 30.74 points, or 0.26 per cent, to 11,933.10.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold fell to $1,116, down $8 U.S. an ounce. Oil lost 84 cents U.S. to $81.03 U.S. a barrel after reaching an two-month high above $82 U.S. Monday.
The Canadian dollar rose 16 basis points to 97.47 cents U.S., inching closer to parity after rising for seven days.
The U.S. dollar rose against the euro early Monday after Fitch Ratings warned that Portugal could have its rating downgraded and that the U.K.'s deficit cutting plan was "too slow" to maintain its current AAA rating in the future.
In Canada, Scotiabank said Tuesday it recorded first-quarter net income of $988 million, or 91 cents a share, up 17 per cent the corresponding period a year earlier. The results beat estimates of 88 cents a share, according to Reuters' analysts. Its shares were trading at $49.67, down 43 cents.
Shares of Research In Motion continued to climb higher after jumping six per cent Monday as several analysts said worries about Apple taking a bite out of the BlackBerry maker's market share were overstated. Its shares were up another 96 cents to $76.41.
According to the Manpower employment outlook for the second quarter, in Canada, 17 per cent of employers surveyed said they expect to see higher payrolls in the second quarter of 2010, while in the U.S. the figure is closer to just five per cent.
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 0.91 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 10,553.43 in early trading, while the Nasdaq composite index rose 1.53 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 2,333.74.
Overseas, the U.K.'s trade deficit widened sharply to eight billion pounds in January from a revised seven billion pounds in December — the largest gap in more than a year — missing expectations for a slight narrowing.
London's FTSE fell 30.39 points, or 0.54 per cent, to 5,576.33 at midday. Frankfurt, Germany's DAX lost 21.98 points, or 0.37 per cent, to 5,853.93, and the Paris CAC lost 16.82 points, or 0.43 per cent, to 3,886.72.
Positive data out of Japan wasn't enough to lift markets there, as the country's leading index rose more than expected — hitting a two-year high — and machine tool orders surged 217 per cent annually.
Meanwhile, China's car sales in the first two months of the year surged to 2.9 million units for January and February.
Japan's Nikkei lost 18.27 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 10,567.65, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 10.68 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 21,207.55.
Monday, the S&P/TSX composite index closed down 11.3 points, or 0.09 per cent, to 11,963.84. The Dow was down 13.68 points, or 0.13 per cent, to 10,552.52, and the Nasdaq was ahead 5.86 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 2,332.21.
