TSX drops on weak commodity prices; set for weekly gains

Canada's main stock index fell on Friday, weighed by weak metal and oil prices, but was set to record a fifth consecutive week of gain on optimism around a faster economic recovery.

The materials sector, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, lost 0.7% as gold futures fell 1.1% to $1,737.70 an ounce.

At 9:45 a.m. ET (13:45 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was down 54.51 points, or 0.28%, at 19,174.36.

Canada added far more jobs than expected in March, and the unemployment rate dropped to its lowest point since before the pandemic, Statistics Canada data showed.

The energy sector climbed 0.2% even as US crude prices were down 0.6% a barrel and Brent crude slipped 0.6%.

The financials sector gained 0.1%, while the industrials sector fell 0.1%.

On the TSX, 67 issues were higher, while 154 issues declined for a 2.30-to-1 ratio to the downside, with 14.88 million shares traded.

The largest percentage gainers on the TSX were Corus Entertainment, which jumped 6.5%, and Turquoise Hill Resources, up6.1%.

New Gold fell 3.6%, the most on the TSX, while the second biggest decliner was First Majestic Silver, down 2.8%.

The most heavily traded shares by volume were The Supreme Cannabis Co, which was flat, PhX Energy Services , down 0.7%, and Corus Entertainment, up 6.5%.

The TSX posted 16 new 52-week highs and no new lows.

Across all Canadian issues, there were 51 new 52-week highs and one new low, with total volume of 33.75 million shares.