TSX Headed For Weak Close; Strong U.S. Jobs Data Fuels Fed Rate Hike Bets

(RTTNews) - The Canadian market, which briefly moved above the flat line around late morning on Friday after staying weak following a negative start, retreated subsequently as stocks from materials and energy sectors shed ground.

Consumer discretionary and consumer staples stocks found some support, but the mood in the market remained cautious amid concerns about growth after data showed the Canadian economy shed 42,000 jobs in August. Meanwhile, stronger than expected U.S. jobs data raised possibilities of a rate hike by the Federal Reserve this month.

Data from Statistics Canada showed the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.4%.

The U.S. Labor Department's data showed U.S. nonfarm payroll employment jumped by 162,000 jobs in August, after rising by an upwardly revised 21,000 jobs in July. The unemployment rate in the U.S. came in unchanged at 4.1%. Economists had expected the unemployment rate to tick up to 4.2%.

The Canadian benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index was down 108.17 points or 0.3% at 36,524.95 a little while ago, coming off a low of 36,432.29 recorded earlier in the session.

Thomson Reuters, Keyera Corp., Silvercorp Metals, Open Text Corporation, Ssr Mining, Aya Gold & Silver, Docebo, Precision Drilling Corporation, K92 Mining, G Mining Ventures, Seabridge Gold and Descartes Systems Group shed 2%-4.5%.

Imperial Oil, Pan American Silver Corp., Aris Mining Corporation, Lundin Gold, Barrick Mining Corporation, Torex Gold Resources, Franco-Nevada Corporation and Fairfax Financial Holdings also drifted notably lower.

Versa Bank soared 9%. BRP Inc. shares jumped 6.3%. Hammond Power, Telesat Corporation, Bombardier, TFI International, West Fraser Timber, Aecon Group, Hut 8 Corp., Magna International, Russel Metals, Bird Construction, Linamar Corporation, Wajax and Aritzia gained 2%-4.5%.

Quebecor gained nearly 3% and Rogers Communications dropped by about 1%. Rogers Communications Inc. announced on Thursday that it has agreed with Quebecor Inc. to a new 12-year sublicensing agreement for French-language national NHL games in Canada, starting with the 2026-2027 season.