On Wednesday, the Canadian market experienced a downturn, breaking its five-session winning streak and retreating from record highs due to a significant decline in technology stocks. This decline followed a sell-off in U.S. semiconductor stocks, driven by concerns of imminent stricter trade restrictions on Chinese companies.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index, which hit an intraday low of 22,808.17, ultimately closed at 22,851.17, marking a loss of 144.22 points or 0.63%.
The Information Technology Capped Index plunged by 2.94%. Notably, Celestica Inc. saw its shares drop over 10%, while Shopify Inc. fell nearly 7%. Converge Technology Solutions Corp settled 6.28% lower. Other significant decliners in the tech sector included Coveo Solutions, Docebo Inc., Tecsys Inc., Lightspeed Commerce, and BlackBerry.
In the materials sector, Equinox Gold Corp and Aya Gold & Silver experienced substantial losses, declining by 5.9% and 5.6%, respectively. Other notable losers included First Majestic Silver Corp, New Gold, Ero Copper, Silvercrest Metals, and Seabridge Gold.
From other sectors, notable declines were observed in Cameco Corporation, ATS Corporation, TFI International, Cargojet, and goeasy Ltd.
However, not all was bleak. Cogeco Communications surged by 10%, Interfor Corporation climbed 6.1%, and West Fraser Timber registered strong gains. Additional prominent gainers included Parkland Corporation, Nutrien, CCL Industries, Winpak, and the Royal Bank of Canada.
