Canadian shares fell as investors awaited the outcome of a two-day Federal Reserve policy meeting and continue to monitor Greek debt talks.
The benchmark Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index (TSE:OSPTX) slid 0.2 percent to 14,727.39 at 12:53 p.m. in Toronto. Five shares declined for every four stocks that advanced as six out of ten share groups were in the negative territory.
The materials sub-index, which includes mining shares, fell 0.8 percent as gold slipped. Goldcorp (TSE:G) fell 1.8 percent to $20.20. The world’s second-biggest producer of the metal agreed to sell its 25.6 percent stake in Tahoe Resources (TSE:THO) for C$998.5 million in a bought deal. Tahoe sank 9 percent to C$16.83.
Barrick Gold (TSE:ABX), the second-largest, fell 2.4 percent to C$13.81.
Spot gold fell 0.7 percent to $1,178.06 an ounce, while U.S. gold futures for August delivery were down $8.20 an ounce at $1,177.60.
Financials, the index's most heavily weighted sector, gave back 0.1 percent. Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY), which has the heaviest weighting in the index, rose 0.1 percent to C$78.33. Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSE:TD), the second-largest bank by market value, tacked on 0.1 percent to C$54.25.
The energy sector, the main index's second most heavily weighted group, edged up 0.2 as oil, Canada’s largest export, climbed.
Suncor Energy (TSE:SU), Canada's largest oil sands producer, skidded 0.3 percent to C$34.15. Enbridge (TSE:ENB), Canada's largest pipeline company, slipped 0.3 percent to C$55.67.
PrairieSky Royalty (TSE:PSK) fell 1.5 percent to C$31.52. The petroleum and natural gas royalty revenue company is selling 5.76 million shares at C$31.25 per share.It plans to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes and to fund future acquisitions.
Imperial Oil (TSE:IMO) rose 0.2 percent to $47.42. The integrated energy company said production from the Kearl oil-sands expansion project in northern Alberta has started ahead of schedule. The original target was late-2015, but the company said in April it was expecting startup mid-year.
Light, sweet crude for July delivery, the U.S. benchmark, was up 0.5 percent at $59.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Yellow Pages (TSE:YLO) agreed to buy the ComFree/DuProprio Network from Square Victoria Digital Properties for C$50 million in cash. The digital media company says the deal will not affect its ability to repay long-term debt.
Alarmforce Industries’ (TSE:AF) net earnings fell 1.8 percent in the second quarter to C$1.74 million. The security company said its revenue was up 6 percent year-over-year to C$14 million.
The junior S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (CVE:OSPVX) inched up 0.2 percent to 679.65 at 12:30 p.m. in Toronto.
In economic news, Statistics Canada said today that foreign investors bought Canadian securities for the fourth straight month in April, snapping up C$12.94 billion ($10.52 billion) to set a new record for the opening four months of a year.
In the U.S. market, shares moved modestly higher. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) rose 0.3 percent to 2,090.42 at 11:42 a.m. in New York. The 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) gained 0.4 percent to 17,866.77, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (INDEXNASDAQ:NDX) added 0.2 percent to 4,442.37. Most followed shares included Avalanche Biotechnologies, Aerie Pharmaceuticals, UnitedHealth Group, Etsy, Alibaba Group, American Airlines, FactSet Research, Oshkosh, Gap, Coty, Fiat Chrysler, and AIG.