Canada's main stock index fell on Friday and was set to record its worst week since October as concerns over vaccine roll-outs weighed on sentiment, while stronger gold and silver prices helped limit losses.
At 09:37 a.m. ET (14:37 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was down 140.15 points, or 0.79%, at 17,517.05. On Wednesday it had jumped 1.3% to post its best day in over two months.
Canada said on Thursday it expects a further delay in Pfizer Inc's COVID-19 vaccine deliveries in the next few weeks, prompting protests from provincial leaders in charge of administering inoculations.
Meanwhile, GDP data showed the Canadian economy likely posted its largest contraction ever in 2020, with GDP seen down 5.1% on the year. November's figures, however, showed the economy continued to outpace expectations. Economic activity remained 3% below pre-pandemic levels.
The materials sector, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, added 1.3% as gold futures rose 1.9% to $1,873.6 an ounce, while silver prices jumped 3.3% to $27.23.
The energy sector was flat, up 0.04%. US crude prices climbed 1.3% a barrel, while Brent crude added 1.2%.
The financials sector slipped 1.4%. The industrials sector fell 1.6%.
On the TSX, 63 issues were higher, while 154 issues declined for a 2.44-to-1 ratio to the downside, with 20.99 million shares traded.
The largest percentage gainers on the TSX were First Majestic Silver and Blackberry Ltd, both up around 11% driven by social-media hyped stock buying.
Real Matters Inc fell 3.7%, the most on the TSX, after multiple brokerages cut price target on the IT services provider's stock after its earnings miss on Wednesday. The second biggest decliner was paper and packaging company Cascades Inc, down 2.7%.
The most heavily traded shares by volume were those of Emera Inc; Blackberry Ltd and Supreme Cannabis Company Inc.
The TSX posted no new 52-week highs and no new lows.
Across all Canadian issues there were four new 52-week highs and two new lows, with total volume of 41.92 million shares.