On Friday, the Canadian market concluded on a subdued note, marking its fifth consecutive session of losses due to concerns over economic growth prospects and uncertainty surrounding the upcoming U.S. presidential election. Declines in the real estate, consumer discretionary, communications, and materials sectors primarily drove this downturn. Several stocks in the industrials, financials, and technology sectors also witnessed weakness, although energy and healthcare stocks provided some support.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index demonstrated initial stability before weakening later in the morning. It continued this downward trend throughout the day, ultimately closing with a decline of 87.88 points, or 0.36%, at 24,463.67. The index registered an overall drop of nearly 1.5% for the week.
In terms of economic indicators, Statistics Canada data indicated that retail sales in the country likely saw a 0.4% increase from the previous month in September, as per a flash estimate. Furthermore, retail sales experienced a 1.4% rise in August compared to the same month in the prior year. Manufacturing sales in Canada fell by 0.8% in September, following a decline of 1.3% in August. Another report from Statistics Canada revealed that the new house price index in Canada remained unchanged at 0% in September, but on an annual basis, it increased to 0.2% from 0% in August.
Among individual stocks, iA Financial Corporation (IAG.TO) saw a decline of 2.5%. Restaurant Brands International (QSR.TO), Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP.TO), Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), and Dollarama Inc (DOL.TO) also ended lower, each experiencing a reduction of 1 to 2%. On the other hand, Winpak Ltd. (WPK.TO) surged by more than 4.5%, while goeasy (GSY.TO) gained approximately 3.2%. Celestica Inc (CLS.TO), West Fraser Timber (WFG.TO), Teck Resources (TECK.B.TO), Precision Drilling Corporation (PD.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Morguard Corporation (MRC.TO), and Boyd Group Services (BYD.TO) reported advancements of 1 to 2.6%.
