High-flying cannabis stocks and a rise in the prices of gold and oil wasn’t enough to keep the TSX above water today.
Canada’s stock exchange slipped 46 points into the red, weighted by the industrials sector which sunk just over a percent with shares in two major railway companies trading lower.
Canadian National Railway Co. dropped 1.9 percent while Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. fell off by 1.2 percent.
Most of the top-traded pot stocks continued to perform, led by a 38 percent spike in Tilray shares.
On Tuesday, Tilray received approval from the U.S. government to import a medical cannabis study drug for research in Southern California.
Gold jumped $5.80 to $1,204 an ounce while the loonie gained 35/100ths of a cent to $0.7742 US, as the greenback weakened amid fears of an escalating U.S./China trade war.
Oil prices hit a two-month high, as declining U.S. crude inventories and looming American sanctions on Iran raised supply concerns. Oil moved $1.29 higher to $71.14 a barrel.
In New York, tariff tensions between the world’s two largest economies didn’t slow down the Dow, with the index climbing 158 points on the back of rising bank stocks and a 2.3 percent boost in shares of industrial giant Caterpillar.
The Nasdaq dropped six points however, pulled down by declines in Microsoft and Apple.
Meanwhile, the prospect of Canada and the U.S. signing off on a revised NAFTA deal dimmed this week, as negotiations drag on in Washington.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there will have to be a “certain amount” of movement for a deal to be done before Trump’s latest deadline of late September, with dairy among the core issues.
