TSX Down Sharply As Materials Stocks Tumble; BoC Leaves Rates Unchanged

(RTTNews) - Canadian stocks are down sharply in negative territory on Wednesday, weighed down by losses in the mining sector following the sharp drop in precious metals prices. Also, data showing a jump in U.S. producer price inflation lifted the greenback, outweighing the National Bank of Canada's decision to hold interest rates unchanged.

The market now awaits the Federal Reserve's monetary policy announcement, due later in the day.

The Canadian equity benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index, which tumbled to 32,438.47, was down 428.81 points or 1.3% at 32,500.28 a little while ago.

The Bank of Canada has left interest rates unchanged for third straight meeting.

The Canadian central bank announced this morning that it will leave interest rates unchanged, as widely expected. The bank's target for the overnight rate remains at 2.25%, with the bank rate at 2.5% and the deposit rate at 2.2%.

The BoC said its decided to leave rates unchanged as risks to growth look tilted to the downside, while inflation risks have also gone up due to higher energy prices.

"We will continue to assess the impact of US tariffs and trade policy uncertainty, and how the Canadian economy is adjusting," the BoC said.

The central bank said that it is also closely monitoring the unfolding conflict in the Middle East and assessing its impact on growth and inflation, and added that it stands ready to respond as needed as the outlook evolves and reiterated its commitment to ensuring Canadians continue to have confidence in price stability through this period of global upheaval.

The Energy Capped Index is down as much as 4.8%, with several stocks from the sector reeling under a severe bout of selling pressure. Novagold Resources, Seabridge, Discovery Silver Corp., Orla Mining, Alamos Gold, Aya Gold & Silver, G Mining Ventures, New Gold, Ssr Mining and Pan American Silver Corp are down 6%-11%.

Consumer staples stock Alimentation Couche-Tard is down more than 5%. Saputo, Premium Brands Holdings Corporation and Jamieson Wellness are down 1%-1.6%.

Boyd Services, Interfor, Cargojet, Bombardier, Bausch Health Companies, Spin Master, Cineplex, Transcontinental, Thomson Reuters, Shopify, Dollarama, CAE and Canadian Natural Resources are among the notable losers from other sectors.

ATS Automation Tooling Systems, Methanex, Mattr Corp., Ensign Energy, Precision Drilling, Cenovus Energy, Fairfax Financial, PrairieSky Royalty, Pason Systems, Canadian Energy Services and Cogeo Cable are up with strong gains.