April 19 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Wednesday as precious and base metal miners and oil companies tracked commodity prices lower on growing bets of U.S. interest rate hikes.
At 10:04 a.m. ET (1404 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) was down 50.46 points, or 0.24%, at 20,634.22.
The energy sector (.SPTTEN) dropped 1.5% as oil prices slid almost 2% as potential U.S. interest rate hikes that could slow growth and curb oil consumption outweighed strong Chinese economic data and falling U.S. inventories.
The materials sector (.GSPTTMT), which includes precious and base metals miners, lost 0.9% as well, with precious and base metal prices losing ground against the dollar.
While the TSX clocked its longest winning streak since the start of the year on Tuesday, buoyed by commodity-linked stocks, rising bets of U.S. interest rates staying higher for longer has recently dented investor sentiment.
"The impact of the massive move higher in interest rates off a low base has been disguised by the lag (effect), and the glut of savings created by the pandemic is going to run its course just as people start to face the real impact of the rise in interest rates," said Matt Skipp, President at SW8 Asset Management.
Meanwhile, data showed Canadian housing starts fell more than expected in March compared with the previous month, while producer prices rose by 0.1% last month.
In company news, Teck Resources (TECKb.TO) edged up 0.8% after miner Glencore (GLEN.L) told shareholders it is willing to improve its $22.5 billion takeover offer.
Suncor Energy (SU.TO) lost 2.4% after reporting the release of 5,900 cubic metres (208,400 cubic feet) of water with more than twice the approved level of suspended solids from a sedimentation pond at its Fort Hills oil sands project in northern Alberta.
