Canadian stock markets are experiencing a downturn on Thursday, influenced by rising tensions in the Middle East and recent data revealing another contraction in the Canadian services sector. Nevertheless, a surge in energy stocks, spurred by higher oil prices, is helping to mitigate some of the market's losses.
Significant declines are observed in the real estate, materials, consumer discretionary, and utilities sectors. Meanwhile, stocks in other sectors are showing varied performances.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index has decreased by 48.45 points, or 0.2%, bringing it to 23,953.10 shortly after midday.
According to S&P Global, the Canada Composite PMI dropped to 47.0 in September, down from 47.8 in August, indicating a more profound contraction in private sector activity for the fourth consecutive month. Similarly, the S&P Global Canada Services PMI fell to 46.4 in September from 47.8 in August, marking its fourth consecutive monthly decline.
Energy stocks, including Tamarack Valley Energy (TVE.TO), Baytex Energy (BTE.TO), MEG Energy Corp (MEG.TO), Paramount Resources (POU.TO), Arc Resources (ARX.TO), Kelt Exploration (KEL.TO), CES Energy Solutions (CEU.TO), Imperial Oil (IMO.TO), Tourmaline Oil Corp (TOU.TO), and Parex Resources (PXT.TO), have seen gains ranging from 2% to 3.4%.
In the real estate sector, stocks such as RioCan Real Estate (REI.UN.TO), H&R Real Estate (HR.UN.TO), Primaris (PMZ.UN.TO), and First Capital REIT Units (FCR.UN.TO) have dropped by 2% to 3%.
Novagold (NG.TO) has suffered the most significant loss within the Materials Capped Index, plummeting over 11%. Equinox Gold Corp (EQX.TO) has fallen by 4.4%, with Ero Copper (ERO.TO), Iamgold Corp (IMG.TO), Lundin Mining Corp (LUN.TO), Ivanhoe Mines (IVN.TO), and First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) also decreasing between 3% and 4.5%.
Within the consumer discretionary sector, Restaurant Brands International (QSR.TO) and Magna International (MG.TO) have declined by 2.3% and 2.1%, respectively, while MTY Food Group (MTY.TO) has decreased by approximately 1.4%.