The Toronto stock market was little changed mid-morning Thursday as oil prices fell and retailing giant Wal-Mart – an influential indicator of consumer spending sentiment across North America – delivered disappointing sales numbers.
The S&P/TSX composite index declined 14.4 points to 11,425.3.
The TSX energy sector was down 0.3 per cent as the December crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange moved down $1.41 to US$77.87 a barrel as the U.S. dollar strengthened and The American Petroleum Institute said that crude supplies rose last week.
EnCana Corp. (TSX: ECA) shares moved 73 cents lower to $59.97 as the energy giant reported that its third-quarter net income fell to $25 million or three cents per share, down from $3.5 billion or $4.73 per share a year earlier. It added that hedging activities softened the blow from lower commodity prices. Operating earnings, which include realized hedging gains and losses, fell to $775 million or $1.03 per share, down from $1.4 billion or $1.92 per share.
The gold sector stepped back 0.74 per cent as gold prices drifted slightly lower from Wednesday's latest record close with the December contract in New York off 50 cents to US$1,114.10 an ounce. Barrick Gold Corp. (TSX: ABX) was off 50 cents to $44.57.
December copper was unchanged at US$2.97 a pound and the base metals sector declined 0.5 per cent. HudBay Minerals (TSX: HBM) fell 34 cents to $16.16.
The Canadian dollar moved down 0.03 of a cent from Tuesday's close to 95.2 cents US.
TSX strength came from the financial sector, up 0.34 per cent as Scotiabank (TSX: BNS) advanced 50 cents to $48.32.
Sun Life Financial (TSX: SLF) and National Bank of Canada (TSX: NA) say they are forming a strategic partnership that will give Sun Life Financial advisers access to a wide range of National Bank financial products for clients. Sun Life shares inched up five cents to $28.39 while National Bank was ahead 94 cents to $60.18.
The TSX Venture Exchange moved down 2.36 points to 1,356.3.
New York markets were mainly lower as the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 6.1 points to 10,285.1.
The Nasdaq composite index was up 3.05 points to 2,169.95 following an announcement that Intel Corp. will pay US$1.25 billion to Advanced Micro Devices Inc., its largest rival in the market for computer processors, to settle all antitrust and patent suits.
AMD has been complaining to regulators for five years that Intel has broken antitrust laws to limit AMD's market share.
The S&P 500 index was up 0.35 of a point to 1,098.85 after Wal-Mart beat expectations on earnings, reporting a 3.2 per cent increase in third-quarter profit to US$3.24 billion and revenue rose to $99.4 billion from $98.3 billion.
But the company said that sales at stores open at least a year fell 0.4 per cent during the quarter, marking the second consecutive quarter that it saw this important measure fall and its shares ticked 56 cents higher US$53.53.
Investors also took in data showing that the American job market is slowly improving. The Labour Department said new claims for unemployment insurance fell to a seasonally adjusted 502,000 from an upwardly revised 514,000 the previous week. That's the fewest claims since the week ending Jan. 3, and below economists' estimates.
In other Canadian earnings news, telecom giant BCE Inc. (TSX: BCE) reported that net income applicable to common shares more than doubled to $558 million in the third quarter, up from $248 million a year earlier. Operating revenue came in at $3.78 billion, up $40 million and BCE shares rose six cents to $27.15.
Diversified investment company Onex Corp. (TSX: OCX) lost $180 million in the third quarter, reversing a year-earlier profit largely due to impairment charges at its Hawker Beechcraft aviation business. Onex's third-quarter loss amounted to $1.48 per share compared to net earnings of $38 million or 30 cents per share in the third quarter of 2008. Revenues declined 14 per cent to $6.1 billion and its shares were down 1/450 cents to $23.60.
FNX Mining Company Inc. (TSX: FNX) says its third-quarter loss more than doubled as it took a $53-million writedown on its investment in Gold Wheaton Gold Corp. (TSX: GLW) and revenue plunged by 75 per cent. FNX reported that its net loss was $58.5 million in the third quarter compared with a year-earlier loss of $26.5 million. FNX shares declined 20 cents to $10.10.
Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 Index dropped 0.7 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index declined one per cent.
London's FTSE 100 index was up 0.56 per cent, the Paris CAC 40 climbed 0.65 the Frankfurt DAX rose 0.78 per cent.
