Toronto stocks ended flat in a quiet session on Friday as a slide in mining shares was offset by firmer financial services issues and the impact of near record crude prices on energy shares. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index closed down 2.21 points, or 0.02 percent, at 9,996.17. Volume was more than 191 million shares worth C$3.6 billion.
"It's a flat day. We suffered from more erosion in the metals and minerals area but overall it was a typical Friday market in the summer with not a lot of surprises," said Fred Ketchen, senior vice-president and director of equity trading at ScotiaMcLeod.
Half of the TSX index's 10 main groups were lower, with a 0.79 percent drop in industrial shares and 0.65 percent decline in materials issues. That was offset by a 0.26 percent rise in the heavily weighted financial services sector and a 0.08 percent increase in energy stocks, which were held up oil prices that stayed close to $60 a barrel.
Declining stocks outpaced advancers 701 to 650.
Industrial shares were hurt by transport companies, whose profits can rise or fall with fluctuating fuel costs. Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd fell C$1.27, or 3 percent, to C$41.61. Canadian National Railway Co fell 71 Canadian cents, or 1 percent, to C$71.51.
The materials sector, which includes a heavy weighting of mining companies, was led lower by Teck Cominco Ltd, off C$1.23 to C$41.68, and Alcan Inc, the world's No 2 aluminium producer, which fell 55 Canadian cents to C$38.05.
Financial services stocks were led higher by Bank of Nova Scotia, up 45 Canadian cents, or 1 percent, to C$41.15, and Sun Life Financial Inc, which rose 56 Canadian cents, or 1.35 percent, to C$41.95, Ketchen said the sector was boosted by positive sentiment from Toronto-Dominion Bank's decision on Wednesday to sell its US online brokerage for $2.9 billion.
Energy stocks were led higher by EnCana Corp, North America's biggest independent oil producer, which rose 30 Canadian cents, or 0.6 percent, to C$50.20.
The TSX easily outperformed its main US counterpart, which fell as oil prices stoked investor fears that high energy prices will hurt corporate profits and consumer spending.
The Dow Jones industrial average, the Standard & Poor's 500 index and the Nasdaq Composite all posted their worst weekly percentage declines in more than two months.
On the day, the Dow Jones industrial average tumbled 123.60 points, or 1.19 percent, to end at 10,297.84. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 9.16 points, or 0.76 percent, to close at 1,191.57. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index lost 17.39 points, or 0.84 percent, to finish at 2,053.27.
Toronto stocks ended up less than 0.5 percent on the week after failing to close above 10,000 for more than a single session. Offsetting the pull of declining US equities was Toronto's heavily weighted energy component, which has benefited from soaring crude prices.
UBS Investment Research cut the weighting of stocks in its model Canadian portfolio on Friday to 50 percent from 55 percent, while increasing cash to 15 percent from 10 percent. Its bond weighting was kept at 35 percent. It also raised its target for the S&P/TSX composite index to 10,400 from 9,900.
It said in a note to clients that lightening up on stocks as the index climbs and buying on pullbacks was the right strategy given the market's significant month-to-month fluctuations.
"We believe the market is a trading range with just a modest uptrend and the opportunities are to counterpunch against that trading range," said Garry Cooper, an analyst with UBS in Toronto.
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