TORONTO: Canada’s main stock index fell on Friday as a drop in gold prices weighed on metal mining shares, but the index still posted its fourth straight monthly gain.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX Composite index ended down 279.70 points, or 0.8 percent, at 35,226.14. For July, the index was up 1.1 percent, led by energy shares.
The materials group, which includes metal mining shares, fell 3 percent. The price of gold was down 1.3 percent as the US dollar rebounded from a more than one-month low hit in the previous session.
Technology was also a drag, falling 2.6 percent. Shares of Telus tumbled 11.3 percent after the company reported a second-quarter loss and reset its quarterly dividend, cutting the annualized payout by 55 percent to focus on debt reduction.
Four of the 10 major sectors ended higher, including energy. It added 0.6 percent, lifting its monthly gain to more than 16 percent.
“Energy had a nice run,” said Michael Constantino, CEO of Webull Canada. “It is an opportunity as well for clients to take some money off the table and shift.”
US crude oil futures settled 1.3 percent higher at USD84.67 a barrel as reports that some tankers were forced to turn around in the Strait of Hormuz prompted traders to reassess shipping flows through the key waterway.
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