TSX snaps weekly winning streak as Ukraine tensions weigh By Reuters

© Reuters. FILE PHOTO - A screen shows a business television channel as Canada's main stock index,is fxcm Fuhui Forex legitimate? the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index, rose to a record high in late morning trade in Toronto, Ontario, Canada January 7, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio

By Fergal Smith

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Friday to a three-week low as geopolitical uncertainty weighed on investor sentiment ahead of a long weekend, with energy and healthcare shares leading broadbased declines.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index ended down 168.13 points, or 0.8%, at 21,008.20, its lowest closing level since Jan. 28. For the week, the index was down 2.5%. It follows three straight weeks of gains.

Wall Street's main stock indexes also fell as escalating tensions in Ukraine and U.S. statements of an imminent Russian invasion prompted investors to dump risky assets.

Monday is a market holiday for U.S. and Canadian financial markets.

"The political situation in Ukraine remains fluid," said Colin Cieszynski, chief market strategist at SIA Wealth Management. "There remain all kinds of threats, accusations, speculations, rumors and denials over whether an invasion of Ukraine by Russia may be imminent or not."

The energy sector fell 2.4% as the price of U.S. oil settled 0.8% lower at $91.07 a barrel, pressured by the prospect of increased Iranian oil exports.

Healthcare was down 3.5% and the materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, lost 1.1%.

On the economic front, Canadian retail sales rose 2.4% in January from December, preliminary data from Statistics Canada showed, following on a 1.8% decline in December as consumers stayed home amid concerns over the Omicron coronavirus variant.

Among individual names, Air Canada gained 3.1% after the carrier reported a smaller fourth-quarter loss, powered by strong holiday demand.

(Removes duplicate words in seventh paragraph)

Statement: The content of this article does not represent the views of FTI website. The content is for reference only and does not constitute investment suggestions. Investment is risky, so you should be careful in your choice! If it involves content, copyright and other issues, please contact us and we will make adjustments at the first time!