Canadian Stocks Experience Mixed Day Amid Earnings Reports and Commodity Price Fluctuations

The Canadian stock market experienced a mixed day on Wednesday, April 27, 2011, with the S&P/TSX Composite Index closing down 16.53 points, or 0.12 percent, at 13,892.57. Despite the slight decline, certain sectors showed significant gains, particularly gold stocks. The S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index, however, bucked the trend, closing up 18.84 points, or 0.84 percent, at 2,251.34.

Key Takeaways:

The S&P/TSX Composite Index declined by 16.53 points, or 0.12 percent, on April 27, 2011, due to losses in the morning session.
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. dropped 2.45 percent as wheat futures fell after Statistics Canada forecast more planting.
Gold stocks performed well, with Barrick Gold Corp. increasing 1.24 percent after reporting a 22 percent rise in first-quarter net earnings.
Kinross Gold Corp. advanced 2.83 percent, while Yamana Gold Inc. climbed 2.48 percent.
Cenovus Energy Inc. reported a 91 percent drop in first-quarter profits, while Sherritt International Corp. saw a 116 percent surge in the same period.
The Canadian dollar appreciated against the U.S. dollar, with one U.S. dollar buying 0.9500 Canadian dollars at 5 p.m. local time on Wednesday.

Statistics:

The S&P/TSX Composite Index closed at 13,892.57 on April 27, 2011.
Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. dropped 2.45 percent on April 27, 2011.
Barrick Gold Corp. increased 1.24 percent on April 27, 2011.
Gold futures rose, contributing to the performance of gold stocks.
Cenovus Energy Inc.'s first-quarter profits dropped 91 percent year-over-year.
Sherritt International Corp.'s first-quarter profits surged 116 percent year-over-year.
The Canadian dollar appreciated 0.0006 against the U.S. dollar on April 27, 2011.

Sources:

Xinhua via COMTEX
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