Canadian Stocks Drift Lower On Global Economic Worries -- Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks are lower Monday morning, weighed down by some disappointing economic data from China and on uncertainty about the outlook for U.S. interest rates.

Mining and consumer discretionary stocks are the prominent losers. Banks are weak, while energy stocks are turning in a mixed performance amid concerns about demand for oil and gas.

The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index is down 50.96 points or 0.33 percent at 15,480.62, after having declined to 15,442.05 earlier.

On Friday, the index closed down 2.74 points or 0.02 percent at 15,531.58, after scaling a high of 15,580.46 and a low of 15,498.12 intraday.

CAE, Inc. (CAE.TO)'s subsidiary CAE Healthcare said Saturday that it will be delivering a simulation-based solution to Abiomed, Inc. (ABMD), a provider of breakthrough heart support technologies, for its Impella heart pump education programs. CAE shares are modestly lower.

Manulife Financial Corporation (MFC.TO) is moving up 1.5 percent after announcing the completion of its previously announced offerings of subscription receipts, raising a total of about $2.26 billion.

Tim Hortons, Inc. (THI.TO) said that its third quarter U.S. same-store sales grew by 7 percent, while Canadian same-store sales rose 3.6 percent. The stock is little changed from its previous closing price.

Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners L.P. (BEP.UN.TO) is down marginally, despite the company raising its distribution growth target to 5 - 9 percent annually, up from previous target of 3 - 5 percent.

Canadian Pacific Railway (CP.TO) is modestly higher, after BMO Capital Markets raised the stock's rating.

The Diversified Metals Index is down 1.3 percent, with First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM.TO) and Nevsun Resources Ltd. (NSU.TO) declining 3 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively.

Teck Resources Limited (TCK.B.TO), Lundin Mining Corporation (LUN.TO), HudBay Minerals Inc. (HBM.TO) and Sherritt International Corporation (S.TO) are down 1.2 to 2 percent, while Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. (TRQ.TO) and Major Drilling Group International Inc. (MDI.TO) are up in positive territory, gaining 1.3 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.

Among gold stocks, GoldCorp Inc. (G.TO) and Agnico Eagle Mines Limited (AEM.TO) are lower by 0.8 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively. B2Gold Corp. (BTO.TO) and Eldorado Gold Corporation (ELD.TO) are down by about 2.2 percent.

The Consumer Discretionary Index is down nearly 1 percent, with Magna International Inc. (MG.TO), Thomson Reuters Corporation (TRI.TO), Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (CTC.A.TO) and Gildan Activewear Inc. (GIL.TO) declining by 1 to 3 percent.

Among energy stocks, Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ.TO), Encana Corporation (ECA.TO) and ARC Resources Ltd. (ARX.TO) are advancing 0.7 to 1.3 percent.

Among big six banks, National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) is up marginally, while the rest are down in negative territory with modest losses.

In the healthcare space, Catamaran Corporation (CCT.TO) is declining nearly 1 percent, Extendicare (EXE.TO) is down 0.3 percent, while Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (VRX.TO) is up marginally.

Among other notable movers, WestJet Airlines (WJA.TO) is moving up 5.8 percent after announcing a fee for for a first checked bag for travels within Canada and between Canada and the United States. Air Canada (AC.B.TO) is rising 6.2 percent.

BlackBerry (BB.TO) is advancing 2.7 percent. Primero Mining Corporation (P.TO) is surging up 5 percent.

In commodities, crude oil futures for October are up $0.24 or 0.26 percent at $92.51 a barrel.

Natural gas for October is up $0.066 or 1.70 percent at $3.923 per million btu.

Gold futures for December are up $2.10 or 0.17 percent at $1,233.60 an ounce.

Silver for December is up marginally at $18.612 an ounce. Meanwhile, copper is down $0.016 or 0.52 percent at $3.091 per pound.

According to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics over the weekend, industrial production in China rose 6.9 percent year-over-year in August following the 9 percent rise in July, with growth slowing for the second straight month and hitting its slowest pace in over 5 years.

Chinese retail sales expanded by a smaller than expected 11.9 percent year-over-year in August, slower than the 12.2 percent increase in July.

Investors are largely shrugging off a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York that showed business activity in the New York manufacturing sector to have expanded at a robust pace in September, lifting the headline business conditions index to 27.5, a near five-year high.

It is widely expected that the U.S. Federal Reserve, which will conclude its two-day policy meeting this Wednesday, will further reduce the pace of its bond purchases. The focus is on what the Fed has to say about the outlook for interest rates.