CANADA STOCKS-Canada's TSX muted as miners, tech gains offset broad drag
By Darshan Kumar R
Sept 29 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index was muted on Tuesday as gains in technology and materials stocks offset weakness across broader sectors, while investors assessed domestic economic data.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX Composite Index .GSPTSE edged 0.1% lower to 35,444.57 points by 10:49 a.m. ET (1449 GMT).
Only two of the benchmark index's 10 major sectors advanced, with technology .SPTTTK shares the biggest gainers, up 1.6%. They took cues from the U.S. Nasdaq, where tech shares rose on optimism around AI Lab Anthropic's public offering
"AI is definitely been what's driving the US economy, at least primarily. (But), Canada is a bit insulated from that to some degree," said Shiraz Ahmed, founder and CEO of Sartorial Wealth
Materials .GSPTTMT, which houses Canadian miners, gained 0.8%, as gold and copper prices staged a rebound from multi-week lows hit in the previous session GOL/ MET/L
Still, rising yields on government bonds globally kept a lid on risk sentiment. The one on the benchmark US 10-year Treasury was up at 5.248%, while the one on the Canadian equivalent was flat
Brent crude futures were down close to 2%, as investors weighed recovering Middle East crude exports against ongoing concerns about supply disruptions stemming from the Iran war O/R
The energy sector .SPTTEN lost 0.9%, among the biggest drags on the TSX
Data showed Canada's economic output was flat in July, as expected, signaling a softer start to the third quarter following robust growth in the prior quarter
"We narrowly missed a recession recently, and the growth data suggests the economy remains on a fragile footing," said Ahmed
WSP Global WSP.TO fell about 3% after at least three brokerages trimmed their price targets on the Canadian engineering firm's stock