TSX Ends Lower Ahead Of Fed Meet, Potash Slump - Canadian Commentary

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks ended lower on Tuesday, as commodities trended lower, with investors turning cautious ahead of the FOMC meeting outcome even as global stocks tracked higher. Potash stocks turned significantly weak amid reports that potash prices may drop up to 25 percent after a major producer announced trading policy changes.

Investors were focused on the upcoming U.S. Federal Reserve policy meet later this week, anticipating the central bank will reaffirm commitment to maintain its accommodative monetary policy and hold interest rates at low levels until next year. Investors also await some major macroeconomic data from the U.S. for fresh cues on the health of the global economy.

Most Asian markets settled higher after China's central bank pro-actively injected funds into money markets, conducting reverse-repurchase operations for the first time in five months. European stocks gained ground as investors weighed some upbeat eurozone economic confidence data.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed Tuesday at 12,581.75, down 87.29 points or 0.69 percent. The index touched an intraday high of 12,669.04 and a low of 12,555.82.

The Capped Materials Index plunged 3.70 percent, with Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan Inc.(POT.TO) plummeting 16.04 percent. Agrium Inc. (AGU.TO) shed 5.00 percent, while Karnalyte Resources Inc. (KRN.TO) plunged 46.19 percent.

The Global Gold Index shed 1.01 percent, with gold futures for December delivery shedding $4.80 or 0.4 percent to close at $1,324.80 an ounce Tuesday on the Nymex.

Among gold stocks, Yamana Gold Inc. (YRI.TO) shed 0.46 percent, while Kinross Gold Corp. (K.TO) surrendered 2.00 percent. Barrick Gold Corp. (ABX.TO) fell 2.05 percent, while Goldcorp Inc. (G.TO) slipped 0.99 percent.

The Diversified Metals & Mining Index slipped1.60 percent, with First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM.TO) up 0.66 percent. Lundin Mining Corp. (LUN.TO) slipped 1.65 percent, while Osisko Mining Corp. (OSK.TO) dived 3.57 percent. Teck Resources Limited (TCK.B.TO) surrendered 1.26 percent.

The Energy Index gained 0.09 percent, with U.S. crude oil futures for September delivery shedding $1.47 or 1.4 percent to close at $104.08 a barrel Tuesday on the Nymex.

Among energy stocks, Suncor Energy Inc. (SU.TO) gained 0.06 percent, while Enbridge Inc. (ENB.TO) slipped 0.37 percent. Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ.TO) dropped 0.97 percent, while Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE.TO) edged up 0.07 percent. Encana Corp. (ECA.TO) gained 0.50 percent, while Tourmaline Oil Corp. (TOU.TO) added 2.22 percent.

The Financial Index slipped 0.69 percent with Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO) down 2.42 percent, Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) shed 0.52 percent, and Toronto-Dominion Bank fell 1.85 percent. Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) gathered 0.10 percent, while National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) added 0.71 percent.

The Information Technology Index dropped 0.75 percent, with BlackBerry Limited (BB.TO) up 0.45 percent.

The Capped Industrials Index moved up 0.31 percent, with Bombardier Inc. (BBD.A.TO, BBD.B.TO) up 1.38 percent.

Airlines services provider WestJet (WJA.TO) shed 0.10 percent after reporting improved second quarter net earnings of C$44.74 million or C$0.34 per share versus C$42.5 million or C$0.31 per share last year, but short of analysts estimates of C$0.33 per share.

Business data provider Thomson Reuters Corp. (TRI, TRI.TO) lost 3.35 percent after reporting its second-quarter net earnings dropped to $262 million or $0.30 per share, from $915 million or $1.08 per share in the same quarter last year. Underlying operating profit for the quarter increased to $569 million from $567 million in the year ago quarter.

In economic news Statistics Canada said higher prices for motor vehicles and other transportation equipment as well as petroleum and coal products pushed the Industrial Product Price Index up by 0.3 percent in June. Meanwhile, the Raw Materials Price Index advanced a similar 0.3 percent, mostly because of higher prices for animals and animal products and crude oil.

In other economic news, home prices in major U.S. metropolitan areas witnessed continued growth in May, a report from Standard & Poor's showed Tuesday. The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index jumped by 2.4 percent on a non-seasonally adjusted basis in May compared to a revised 2.6 percent increase in April. Economists expected prices to increase 2.0 percent compared to the 2.5 percent growth originally reported for the previous month. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the 20-City Composite Home Price Index rose by 1.0 percent in May following a 1.7 percent increase in April.

Meanwhile, the Conference Board's U.S. consumer confidence index dropped to 80.3 in July from a revised 82.1 in June. Economists expected the index to dip to 81.0 from the 81.4 originally reported for the previous month. The decline comes after the index had reached a more than five-year high in June.

From Europe, German consumer sentiment will likely improve in August, reports said, citing a survey report from market research firm GfK. The forward-looking consumer confidence index posted 7 in August, up from 6.8 in July. Economists expected a more modest increased to 6.9.

Meanwhile, eurozone economic confidence strengthened in July, driven by improved confidence among consumers and managers in industry, services and retail trade, survey data from the European Commission showed. The economic confidence index improved to 92.5 from 91.3 in the previous month. The reading matched economists' expectations.