S&P/TSX composite down more than 200 points, U.S. markets also reverse gains

Canada’s main stock index closed down more than 200 points Thursday, pulled down by broad-based losses, while U.S. markets also reversed much of the gains made Wednesday, with the Nasdaq tumbling more than two per cent.

The S&P/TSX composite index was down 221.44 points, or 1.13 per cent, at 19,349.66.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 348.99 points at 33,027.49.The S&P 500 index was down 56.05 points, or almost 1.5 per cent, at 3,822.39, while the Nasdaq composite was down 233.25 points, or almost 2.2 per cent, at 10,476.12.

Thursday’s reverse illustrated the ongoing battle between optimism and pessimism over economic data releases and their potential effects on interest rates, said Mike Archibald, vice-president and portfolio manager with AGF Investments Inc.

GDP numbers released in the U.S. were higher than expected, he said,in yet another good-news-is-bad-news scenario.

“As you get stronger economic data, that’s likely to embolden the Federal Reserve to keep rates higher, or potentially raise them even further,” said Archibald.

This is putting pressure on the stock market, especially the tech-heavy Nasdaq, said Archibald, noting that the weak Micron outlook reported Wednesday can’t be helping.

The data is also putting upward pressure on the U.S. dollar, which is hitting commodities, he said.

“(When) the dollar moves up, it doesn’t tend to be very risk-friendly.”

The TSX isn’t quite as low, since tech is a much smaller part of the index, said Archibald. Major sectors like financial and telecom, though down, are outperforming other areas, helping buoy the TSX above its U.S. counterparts.

The Canadian dollar traded for 73.23 cents US compared with 73.46 cents US on Wednesday.

There were some glimmers of good news, said Archibald, noting that the markets’ loss Thursday softened as the afternoon progressed.

The U.S. Senate also passed a government funding bill Thursday around the time that markets were at their lowest, optimism from which may have helped markets rally a little towards the end of the day, he said.

Meanwhile in Canada, new data showed job vacancies were down 4.8 per cent in October, to the lowest level since August 2021.

It still remains to be seen whether recent economic data will be enough to stave off one more Bank of Canada interest rate hike, said Archibald, but he’s hoping for a wait-and-see approach to avoid drastic consequences on Canada’s rate-sensitive economy.

The February crude contract was down 80 cents at US$77.49 per barrel and the February natural gas contract was down 31 cents at US$4.93 per mmBTU.

The February gold contract was down US$30.10 at US$1,795.30 an ounce and the March copper contract was down five cents at US$3.76 a pound.