Canadian shares were steady in thin trading today due to the U.S. Independence Day holiday, with gains limited by a drop in energy shares as oil prices eased back.
The benchmark Standard & Poor’s/TSX Composite Index (TSE:OSPTX) added 0.1 percent to 14,628.26 at 12:25 p.m. in Toronto. Six out of ten share groups were in the positive territory.
The energy sector, the main index's second most heavily weighted group, sank 0.8 percent as oil, Canada’s largest export, fell in thin trade. Suncor Energy (TSE:SU), Canada's largest oil sands producer, sagged 0.7 percent to C$34.38. Enbridge (TSE:ENB), Canada's largest pipeline company, retreated 0.9 percent to C$58.30.
Crescent Point Energy (TSE:CPG) skidded 0.4 percent to C$25.46 after the Canadian light oil producer agreed to buy Coral Hill Energy Ltd. for about 4.28 million shares and the assumption of about C$132 million of debt, for a total value of roughly C$258 million.
Brent crude for August was down $1.69 at $60.37 a barrel at 11.43 a.m., extending a downward trend since early May in which prices have fallen around 13 percent. Front-month U.S. crude was at $55.51, down $1.40, dropping below a trading range of $57 to $62 seen since early May.
The materials sub-index, which includes mining shares, advanced 0.7 percent as gold prices firmed. Goldcorp (TSE:G), Canada’s largest gold miner by market value, rose 1.2 percent to C$20.52. Barrick Gold (TSE:ABX), the second-largest, tacked on 0.7 percent to C$13.34.
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (TSE:POT) rose 0.7 percent to C$39.15. The fertilizer company said it’s confident it can address the concerns of German salt and fertilizer company K+S AG, which rebuffed a takeover approach valued at $8.75 billion.
Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,167.70 an ounce.
Financials, the index's most heavily weighted sector, rose 0.4 percent. Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY), which has the heaviest weighting in the index, gained 0.6 percent to C$76.65.
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSE:TD), the second-largest bank by market value, gained 0.5 percent to C$53.36.
WestJet Airlines (TSE:WJA) slipped 0.5 percent to C$26.80. Canada's second-biggest carrier late yesterday reported a fifth bomb threat on one of its aircrafts. The incident is the latest in a string of security threats over a six-day period.
Richelieu Hardware (TSE:RCH) was flat at C$64.50. The maker of specialty hardware posted second-quarter net income of C$0.74 per share, up from C$0.66 a year earlier.
The junior S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (CVE:OSPVX) slipped 0.2 percent to 670.39 at 12:31 p.m. in Toronto.
In economic news, Finance Minister Joe Oliver said he doesn’t believe Canada will fall into a recession amid “mixed signals” from an economy that’s contracted for four consecutive months.