Oil up, gold down, TSX flat
RTGAM
With commodity prices heading in different directions on Monday, it is little wonder that the commodity-heavy S&P/TSX composite index was also pushed and pulled, leaving it not far from where it began. It closed at 13,261.04, down 57.33 points or 0.4 per cent.
On the upside, crude oil traded at $89.98 (U.S.) a barrel in New York, up $1.02. That gave a boost to a number of energy producers including Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. and Suncor Energy Inc. They rose 2.8 per cent and 1.1 per cent, respectively. On the downside, though, gold tumbled $2.29 an ounce to $903.18, making Barrick Gold Corp. act like a concrete block on the index's ankle. Barrick shares tumbled to $49.07, down $1.57 or 3.1%.
In the United States, where commodities are consumed more than they are produced, the Dow Jones industrial average closed at 12,635.16, down 108.03 points or 0.85 per cent. The S&P 500 fell to 1380.82, down 14.6 points or 1.05 per cent, weighed down by financials that had been downgraded by analysts amid ongoing credit concerns. Merck & Co. Inc., the pharmaceutical company, was one of the brightest spots in the day. Its shares rose 3.2%.
Copyright 2001 The Globe and Mail