TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index edged lower Wednesday following Tuesday’s slide, while U.S. markets were mixed, as the Federal Reserve minutes from the latest interest rate decision in the U.S. showed officials unanimously agreed that more hikes are on the horizon.
The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 59.31 points at 20,193.33.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 84.50 points at 33,045.09.The S&P 500 index was down 6.29 points at 3,991.05,while the Nasdaq composite was up 14.77 points at 11,507.07.
Markets started off strong Wednesday, said Michael Currie, senior investment adviser at TD Wealth, erasing some of the losses suffered Tuesday, which saw the worst daily drop so far in 2023.
However, after the minutes from the latest Federal Reserve interest rate decision were released, markets reversed their morning gains, Currie said.
“We really just gave back what we made in the morning,” said Currie.
The minutes showed more dissent among Fed officials than usual, he said, likely sparking concerns among investors at the uncertainty.
“The general consensus was definitely rates are going higher. But there were a lot of different camps within the board,” he said, with some urging a larger hike of a half-percentage point.
Investors don’t want to see rates go up, but more than that, they don’t want to be surprised, said Currie.
After the rally that began 2023, markets have been softening in recent weeks as optimism over the trajectory of interest rates abates. Investors, once pricing in more than one rate cut at the end of the year in both Canada and the U.S., are now appearing more cautious, experts say, with economic data showing the path to lower inflation isn’t going to be a straight or smooth one.
Commodities also appeared to soften after the minutes were released, said Currie, with oil in particular taking a cut.
The energy index on the TSX was down 1.18 per cent.
The Canadian dollar traded for 73.84 cents UScompared with 73.99 cents US on Tuesday.
The April crude contract was down US$2.41 at US$73.95 per barreland the April natural gas contract was up 12 cents at US$2.30 per mmBTU.
The April gold contract was down one dollar at US$1,841.50 an ounceand the March copper contract was down four cents at US$4.19 a pound.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 22, 2023.
Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX_CADUSD=X)
