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TSX ends down 0.2% at 20,630.69
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Energy falls 1.3%; oil settles 2.4% lower
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Technology loses 0.8%
(Adds analyst comment, market details)
By Shristi Achar A and Fergal Smith
April 20 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock market index
fell on Thursday as lower oil prices weighed on energy shares,
with the market pulling back from a two-month high it touched
earlier this week.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended down 50.14 points, or 0.2%, at 20,630.69. It
also ended lower on Wednesday after posting the previous day its
highest closing level since Feb. 15 at 20,684.68.
"Oil is getting crushed as Wall Street starts to get a
steady stream of disappointing outlooks and on concerns that
sentiment with China's households and business might not be as
robust as some are thinking," Edward Moya, a senior market
analyst at OANDA, said in a note.
The Toronto market's energy sector dropped 1.3% as
oil settled 2.4% lower at $77.29 a barrel. Technology was also a
drag, falling 0.8%.
"We're seeing a continued decline in the economy, especially in the U.S., which obviously affects us here in Canada," said Allan Small, senior investment adviser at Allan Small Financial Group with iA Private Wealth. Major U.S. stock indexes ended lower after disappointing quarterly reports from companies including Tesla Inc and AT&T Inc , while investors sought clarity on the path of interest rates. Sumitomo Metal Mining said it supports Teck Resources' plan to create two separate companies, as the Vancouver-based miner fends off an unsolicited takeover bid from mining giant Glencore . Shares of Teck Resources fell 2.3%, while Toronto-Dominion Bank shares were barely changed. The bank still sees value in its planned $13.4 billion takeover of First Horizon Corp , TD's chief executive officer said, as several shareholders asked him about abandoning or renegotiating the deal. (Reporting by Shristi Achar A in Bengaluru and Fergal Smith in Toronto Editing by Deepa Babington and Matthew Lewis)
