TSX slips on European debt worries
Written by on February 5th, 2010 in Latest News.
Worries about Europe’s debt crisis helped to send the Toronto Stock Exchange lower Friday.
Traders also sold stocks amid new U.S. unemployment data showing the American economy shed 20,000 jobs in January.
A man tries to clean a shop window in central Athens near a wall where a slogan reading ‘Revolution Now’ in Greek was spray-painted. (Petros Giannakouris/Associated Press)
The benchmark index of the Toronto stock market, the S&P/TSX composite index, was down 57 points at 12:30 p.m. ET after plunging 262 points Thursday. In New York, markets seesawed between gains and losses.
The Dow Jones industrials lost 47 points to 9,954 after losing 268 points Thursday. The Nasdaq composite index slipped less than a point to 2,124 while the S&P 500 index dropped 5 points to 1,058.
Investors were also watching the debt crisis in Greece amid fears Portugal, Spain and Ireland, with weak public finances, may also be unable to deliver on promises to cut their deficits.
Greek customs and tax officials have already begun a 48-hour strike in protest at plotted austerity measures. The debt crisis has prompted a rush to the perceived safety of the U.S. dollar, which in turn pressured commodity prices.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.45 of a cent to 93.67 cents. Oil prices slipped a bit more after falling nearly $4 US on Thursday.
The March crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange dropped another $2.30 US a barrel to 70.84 US. Crude plunged along $4 US a barrel on Thursday.
The April bullion contract on the Nymex declined another $9 to $1,054 US an ounce, following a near $50 US drop on Thursday.
With files from The Canadian Press
