Canadian inflation slows, but markets bearish

Allan Tong Posted On February 20, 2024

Markets returned to business Tuesday after the long weekend on both sides of the border. Canadian inflation was down to 2.9% year-over-year in January, lower than the expected 3.1% and falling within the Bank of Canada’s target range. Despite the good news, the TSX declined 0.26% to close below 21,200. Only four sectors gained, led by consumer staples, while industrials and tech lagged the most.

Notable names: Great-West Lifeco up 1.24%, Cenovus -1.11%, Canada Goose 4.99%, Dundee Precious Metals 6.55% and Methanex -10.54%. WTI slid 1.25% to nearly $78 a barrel.

The picture was more bearish on Wall Street where jitters over inflation and interest rates weighed on investors. The S&P closed -0.75 to below 5,000, the Nasdaq -11% to 15,600 and the Dow -0.29%. The U.S. 10-year yield hovered around 4.275% as Bitcoin climbed 0.4% to nearly $52,000. Major movers included Tesla at -3.35%, AMD -4.62% and Nvidia -4.49% on the eve of earnings. The big news of Tuesday was Capital One buying Discover Financial Services. Shares rose 0.16% and 12.22% respectively.

🏛 Great West Lifeco (GWO-T) +1.24%

🛢 Cenovus Energy (CVE-T) -1.11%

🧣 Canada Goose Holdings (GOOS-T) +4.99%

⛏ Dundee Precious Metals Inc. (DPM-T) +6.55%

🧫 Methanex Corp (MX-T) -10.54%

🅱 Bitcoin (BTCUSD) (CRYPTO:BTC) +0.4%

🚗 Tesla Inc (TSLA-Q) -3.35%

💾 Advanced Micro Devices (AMD-Q) -4.62%

💾 NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA-Q) -4.49%

🏛 Capital One Financial Corp (COF-N) +0.16%

🏛 Discover Financial Services LLC (DFS-N) +12.22%