TSX ends in negative territory on economic data, despite fight for gains

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The Toronto stock market fought a losing battle to emerge from the red on Friday as investors weighed underwhelming readings for both Canadian and U.S. economies.

The S&P/TSX composite index closed the day 15.21 points lower to 11,713.43, with the main index ending relatively flat for the week, but 3.7 per cent higher for the month.

Statistics Canada said the country's gross domestic product grew by 0.1 per cent in May, better than the flat reading in April but slower than experienced in the first quarter.

In the U.S., the Commerce Department said the GDP grew at an annual pace of 2.4 per cent from April to June. That was less than the 2.5 per cent that economists had expected.

The reports told a somewhat different tale in the two countries, with indications that Canada is maintaining a slow-but-steady recovery from the recession while the U.S. is waging a tougher battle to regain ground.

However, upside came from the University of Michigan/Reuters consumer sentiment index which rose slightly more than expected for July, and helped erase market losses made earlier in the session.

On Wall Street, markets also endured a choppy session that swayed in and out positive territory before closing relatively flat.

The Dow Jones industrial average backed off 1.22 points to 10,465.94 while the Nasdaq composite index was up 3.01 points at 2,254.70. The S&P 500 index was up 0.07 of a point at 1,101.60.

``One day the bulls have it and the next day the bears have it ... it is a tug of war, quite depending on who's tugging a little harder,'' said Irwin Michael of ABC Funds.

``We expect the market and the economy to sawtooth (their) way up ... two steps forward, one step back. We like what we see, but it's testing everyone's patience.''

The Canadian dollar gained 0.74 of a cent to end the day at 97.25 cents U.S.

The TSX suffered a brief outage near midday which affected updates of the S&P/TSX indices. A representative for the stock exchange was not available to confirm how long the outage lasted for, though trading appeared to have returned to normal by the afternoon.

The Toronto energy sector slipped 0.4 per cent as the September crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 59 cents to $78.95, as oil futures rose 4.4 per cent for July.

Enbridge (TSX:ENB) shares edged up 24 cents to $50.04 as the company worked to contain an oil spill in the U.S. Midwest. The regulatory arm of the U.S. Department of Transportation says it warned the company in January that it may have violated safety codes by improperly monitoring corrosion in the pipeline responsible for the massive spill.

Gold stocks added 0.6 per cent after as the August bullion contract gained $13.30 to close at US$1,181.70 an ounce. The more active December contract was up $12.70 to close at $1,183.90.

Copper delivery for September was ahead two cents to $3.31 a pound, closing out the month 12 per cent higher.

TSX financials were down half a per cent with CIBC losing 45 cents to $70.60.

Tech stocks led gains, up 1.3 per cent, with Research In Motion (TSX:RIM) shares lifting more than two and half per cent to $59.15 amid rumours that the company could unveil a new touchscreen phone as early as Tuesday.

Canadian stock markets will be closed on Monday.

For just the data tables, click here.