Bank stocks were among the most heavily weighted decliners on the SP/TSX composite index on Tuesday as news of a stalemate in Greek debt negotiations dragged down Canada’s benchmark stock index.
The SP/TSX composite index dropped for the first time in five sessions, closing at 12,395.24, a loss of 126.47 points, or 1.01%. Nine of the 10 sub-indexes declined, with consumer goods the sole gainer. Industrials led the declines, falling 1.8% as Canadian National Railway retreated 4.7% to $75.86 despite hiking its dividend and reporting fourth-quarter earnings that blew past expectations. Investors were reacting to its 2012 forecasted earnings of $5.32 a share, below analysts’ estimates of $5.39, according to the average estimate in a Bloomberg survey.
Meanwhile, the financials sub-index slipped 0.91% after Greek debt negotiations stalled when EU finance ministers rejected as insufficient an offer made by creditors to help restructure Greece’s debts.
Royal Bank of Canada shares slipped 0.9% to $53.79, Toronto Dominion fell 1.09% to $79.30 and Bank of Nova Scotia saw its share price drop 1.08% to $53.96.
While the idea of a Greek default is spooking investors, in the end it would be “uncatastrophic,” Michael Shaoul, chairman of Marketfield Asset Management in New York, told Bloomberg. “There