(Adds details)
By Wojtek Dabrowski
TORONTO, May 9 (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's main index finished in the red on Friday as profit-taking cooled the energy sector even though oil prices hit another record high.
The S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> dropped 86.80 points, or 0.59 percent, to close at 14,521.19.
"We had such a very good day yesterday and this market is still a very tricky market, so we probably ran into some profit-taking today," said John Kinsey, portfolio manager at Caldwell Securities Ltd. The index rose more than 200 points on Thursday.
Eight of the 10 main subgroups on the benchmark ended lower, including the key energy and materials sectors, which dropped 0.52 percent and 1.83 percent, respectively. Financials inched 0.06 percent lower.
The S&P/TSX 60 index of Canadian large-cap stocks lost 5.99 points, or 0.69 percent, to end at 863.46.
Oil shares fell even though crude jumped to a record high above $126 a barrel, extending its gains on fuel supply concerns and speculator buying.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd <CNQ.TO> was among the energy companies that fell, losing C$1.85, or 1.9 percent, to C$94.15 a day after it reported a surge in quarterly profit because of rocketing oil prices.
Oil and gas powerhouse EnCana Corp <ECA.TO> fell 96 Canadian cents, or 1.1 percent, to end at C$86.52.
"The stocks are down for a change, they're not following their commodity," Kinsey said.
Gold prices moved higher on the back of oil on Friday -- an increase not reflected in the shares of gold producers such as Barrick Gold <ABX.TO>, which fell C$1.49, or 3.6 percent, to finish at C$39.51.
Among companies reporting results, ACE Aviation Holdings <ACEa.TO>, parent of airline Air Canada <ACa.TO>, posted a first-quarter loss on Friday because of one-time charges and said it would buy back about 42 percent of its stock. Its shares spiked C$1.41, or 7 percent, to C$21.46.
In the United States, the Dow Jones industrial average shed 120.90 points, or 0.94 percent, to close at 12,745.88. There, a dismal set of results from insurance behemoth American International Group <AIG.N> raised doubts that the end of the credit crisis was near. The tech-heavy Nasdaq moved lower by 5.72 points, or 0.23 percent, to 2,445.52.
($1=$1.02 Canadian) (Reporting by Wojtek Dabrowski; editing by Peter Galloway) ((wojtek.dabrowski@reuters.com; +1-416-941-8009; Reuters Messaging: wojtek.dabrowski.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS
(Adds details, comments, updated closing numbers)
By Wojtek Dabrowski
TORONTO, May 9 (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's main index finished in the red on Friday as profit-taking cooled the energy sector even though oil prices hit another record high.
The S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> dropped 86.80 points, or 0.59 percent, to close at 14,521.19.
"We had such a very good day yesterday and this market is still a very tricky market, so we probably ran into some profit-taking today," said John Kinsey, portfolio manager at Caldwell Securities Ltd. The index rose more than 200 points on Thursday.
Eight of the 10 main subgroups on the benchmark ended lower, including the key energy and materials sectors, which dropped 0.52 percent and 1.83 percent, respectively. Financials inched 0.06 percent lower.
Oil shares fell even though crude jumped to a record high above $126 a barrel, extending its gains on fuel supply concerns and speculator buying.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd <CNQ.TO> was among the energy companies that fell, losing C$1.85, or 1.9 percent, to C$94.15 a day after it reported a surge in quarterly profit because of rocketing oil prices.
Oil and gas powerhouse EnCana Corp <ECA.TO> fell 96 Canadian cents, or 1.1 percent, to end at C$86.52.
"The stocks are down for a change, they're not following their commodity," Kinsey said.
Gold prices moved higher on the back of oil on Friday -- an increase not reflected in the shares of gold producers such as Barrick Gold <ABX.TO>, which fell C$1.49, or 3.6 percent, to finish at C$39.51. ($1=$1.02 Canadian) (Reporting by Wojtek Dabrowski; editing by Peter Galloway) ((wojtek.dabrowski@reuters.com; +1-416-941-8009; Reuters Messaging: wojtek.dabrowski.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS
TORONTO, May 9 (Reuters) - The Toronto Stock Exchange's main index finished in the red on Friday as profit-taking cooled the energy sector even though oil prices hit another record high.
The S&P/TSX composite index <.GSPTSE> dropped 74.22 points, or 0.51 percent, to unofficially close at 14,533.77. (Reporting by Wojtek Dabrowski; editing by Peter Galloway) ((wojtek.dabrowski@reuters.com; +1-416-941-8009; Reuters Messaging: wojtek.dabrowski.reuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS CANADA STOCKS
NEW YORK, May 9 (Reuters) - U.S. copper futures finished sharply lower on Friday, sliding to a nine-day low after a surge in London Metal Exchange and weekly Shanghai Exchange warehouse stocks spooked investors, many of whom had already begun exiting positions this week, traders said.
NOTE: For detailed report, click on [MET/L].
* Copper for July delivery <HGN8> ended with losses of 7.10 cent at $3.7165 a lb on the COMEX metals division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
* July futures slid to a 9-day low at $3.6775 a lb, leaving support at the May 1 low of $3.6675 a lb intact.
* London Metal Exchange copper warehouse stocks surged 11,150 tonnes on Friday to 121,275 tonnes. COMEX warehouse copper stocks stood even at 10,827 short tons on Thursday.
* Shanghai Futures Exchange copper inventories jumped 10 percent to 51,119 tonnes in the week to Thursday.
* Talk circulated the Shanghai market that South Korean LME warehouses would also soon see around 10,000 tonnes of copper deliveries from China.
* Analysts said much of the material causing the stock surge came from China, and is often followed by additional rises in copper stocks.
* Traders said Chinese buyers have been absent from the market of late.
* Some players were already in the process this week of unwinding long copper positions hastily taken out in Monday's unusual spike up to the $4.2605 a lb record high.
* A breach of July copper's March low at $3.6070 per lb would open up the downside to a much steeper decline.
* COMEX estimated final copper volume at 16,299 lots compared with Thursday's total volume of 14,749 lots.
* Open interest was down 783 lots at 98,360 contracts as of May 8.
* LME copper for delivery in three months <MCU3> finished Friday at $8,100 per tonne, down from $8,300 per tonne on Thursday.
(Reporting by Carole Vaporean; Editing by David Gregorio) ((carole.vaporean@reuters.com; 1-646-223-6044; Reuters Messaging: carole.vaporean.reuters.com@reuters.net; nyc.commods.newsroom@reuters.com))
For the latest news and prices, click on the codes in brackets:
LME overview <RING>
LME Warehouse stocks <LME/STX1>
Spot gold/silver <XAU=><XAG=>
COMEX copper futures <0#HG:>
COMEX metals warehouse stocks <CMWST>-<CMWSV>
N.Y. metals hourly volumes <IZQI>
Vols/open interest <MTXM>
RELATED NEWS AND OTHER TOPICS Precious metals news [GOL] All metals news [MTL] All commodities news [C] Metals diary [MTL/DIARY] Ldn Bullion Mkt Assoc <LBMA01> Foreign exchange rates <FX=S> Keywords: MARKETS COPPER/COMEX
JOHANNESBURG, May 9 (Reuters) - South African stocks retreated from a new high and the rand slipped on Friday on profit-taking and as renewed concerns about credit problems prompted investors to drop riskier assets.
The Johannesburg bourse surged to an all-time peak in early trade but gains were short-lived and profit-taking helped drag both the blue-chip and broader all-share indices lower.
The Top 40 index <.JTOPI> ended the day 0.06 percent down at 30,127.72 points after hitting a record 30,437.44, while the broader All-share <.JALSH> fell 0.05 percent to 32,136.15 points. It had touched a peak of 32,440.90.
"The market has been seeing a bit of profit-taking in places ... shares that have had some big runs on the back of world markets," said Ferdi Heyneke, a portfolio manager at Afrifocus Securities said.
New York's Dow Jones was down almost one percent in early trade.
The rand <ZAR=D3> gave up more of its recent gains to weaken over one percent against the dollar for the third straight day of losses.
It was trading at 7.73 to the dollar at 1550 GMT, 1.5 percent softer than its previous close in New York after falling to 7.7440 earlier in the day, its weakest level in two weeks.
The dollar fell against major currencies after a rise in risk aversion on sagging global stocks bolstered the safer, low yielding currencies like the Japanese yen.
A larger-than-expected quarterly loss from American International Group <AIG.N>, the world's largest insurer by market cap, rekindled concerns about credit problems and that the end is not in sight for U.S. economic problems.
"The main driver of the rand was dollar-yen ... that pushed the rand and emerging markets with it," ABN AMRO trader Paul Peter said.
RISK AVERSION
The local currency's inability to strengthen significantly through 7.50 earlier in the week had also helped it to bounce back, triggering stop-losses, he said.
The rand notched up a two-month high of 7.4890 on Wednesday.
Government bonds followed the currency weaker on risk aversion and worries about inflation as oil rallied to another record high.
The yield on the benchmark 2015 <ZAR157=BZ> bond rose 2.5 basis points to 9.495 percent compared to Thursday's close, while the short-dated 2010 <ZAR153=> yield was up 5 basis points at 10.41 percent.
The 2036 <ZAR209=> was 2 basis points higher at 9.14 percent.
Construction group Murray & Roberts Holdings Ltd <MURJ.J> was the biggest loser on the bourse, shedding 2.82 percent to 86.00 rand, while paper producer Mondi <MNDJ.J> lost 2.29 percent to 64.40 rand.
South Africa's largest insurer Old Mutual <OMLJ.J> lost 2.20 percent to 18.22 rand.
"The mutual obviously is very much in line with sentiment in terms of the world market coming down at the moment," said Heyneke.
Bourse heavyweight Anglo American <AGLJ.J> fell 1.17 percent to 509.50 rand but global diversified miner BHP Billiton <BILJ.J> gained 0.21 percent to 297.32 rand.
Harmony Gold <HARJ.J> jumped 3.79 percent to 95.49 rand and industrial group Barloworld <BAWJ.J> leapt 3.34 percent to close at 114.60 rand.
The platinum price jumped 4 percent to a seven-week high on investor buying ahead of the launch of platinum exchange-traded notes (ETNs), helping Impala Platinum <IMPJ.J> rise 1.18 percent to 344.00 rand. (Reporting by Gordon Bell and Gugulakhe Lourie; editing by David Christian-Edwards)
((gordon.bell@reuters.com; +27 11 775 3151; Reuters Messaging: gordon.bell.reuters.com@reuters.net)) (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com/ )
Keywords: MARKETS SAFRICA/CLOSE
Next: UPDATE 1-Toronto stocks slip as resources retreat