Business

North American markets mixed, Nasdaq on track for new record – BNN

Published

4 years ago

July 7, 2020

4:15 p.m. ET: North American markets fall, close near session lows

North American equity markets closed lower in Tuesday’s trade, erasing much of the gains from Monday’s rally. The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 0.47 per cent, the S&P 500 dropped 1.08 per cent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 1.51 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index shed 0.86 per cent of its value.

The selloff accelerated into the closing hour of trading, after the major North American markets were largely mixed through midday. The declines marked the first negative showing for the S&P 500 in six trading sessions, with the broad-market benchmark snapping its longest winning streak of the year.

U.S. markets were led lower by stocks seen as sensitive to the prospects for a global economic reopening, with airlines, hotel operators and cruise line stocks posting losses. Boeing Co. on its own erased 62 points from the Dow with its 4.77 per cent drop.

In Toronto, nine of the 11 TSX subgroups finished in negative territory, with consumer discretionary, financials and health care posting the largest declines. Only materials and information technology closed the day higher.

160 of the composite’s 221 individual constituents closed out the session lower, with Enerplus Corp. and Seven Generations Energy Ltd. notching the largest percentage declines.

Oil prices retreated modestly, with U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate falling 0.74 per cent to US$40.33 per barrel and Alberta’s Western Canadian Select down 0.39 per cent to US$33.08 per barrel.

The Canadian dollar slipped against its American counterpart, falling four-tenths of a cent to 73.48 cents U.S.

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12:00 p.m. ET: North American markets mixed, Nasdaq on track for new record

North American equity markets were mixed entering the Tuesday afternoon session, with the S&P/TSX Composite up about 0.2 per cent, the S&P 500 trading essentially flat, the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.7 per cent and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index up half a per cent.

Gains made in technology stocks had the Nasdaq on track to post a new record closing high, as heavyweights including Apple Inc., Facebook Inc. and Microsoft Corp. pushed the index higher.

The underperformance of the Dow was in no small part due to a 3.6 per cent decline in shares of Boeing, which took 46 points off the average on its own. Shares in the U.S. planemaker fell amid broad-based weakness in airline and hotel stocks amid concerns the surging U.S. COVID-19 case count could lead to another clampdown on gradual economic reopenings.

In Toronto, six of the 11 TSX subgroups were in negative territory, led lower by financials, health care and consumer discretionary stocks. Information technology, materials and industrials were the top performers.

Just over half of the composite’s 221 individual constituents were lower, with Enerplus Corp and Air Canada posting the largest percentage declines.

Oil prices pushed modestly higher, with U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate rising half a per cent to US$40.83 per barrel. Alberta’s Western Canadian Select gained 0.63 per cent to US$33.42 per barrel.

The Canadian dollar continued to lose ground against its American counterpart, shedding a quarter of a cent to trade at 73.61 cents U.S.

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9:40 a.m. ET: North American markets slip, give back some of Monday’s rally

North American equity markets slid in early trading Tuesday, paring some of the gains made in Monday’s rally.

The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell about half a per cent, the S&P 500 declined 0.6 per cent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.75 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index slipped a modest 0.3 per cent.

The S&P 500 is on track to snap its five-day string of gains, the longest winning streak for the index since December as investors weigh the impact of global economic reopenings against a surge of new COVID-19 cases in the United States.

Traditional safe-haven assets rose following Monday’s declines, with a measure of the U.S. dollar and U.S. Treasuries both posting modest gains.

In Toronto, all eleven TSX subgroups opened the day in negative territory, led lower by energy, financials and healthcare stocks.

Crude oil gave up ground, with U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate down 0.7 per cent to US$40.36 per barrel. Alberta’s Western Canadian Select posted a similar decline, falling 0.66 per cent to US$32.99 per barrel.

The Canadian dollar fell two-tenths of a cent against its American counterpart to 73.64 cents U.S.

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Business

Roots sees room for expansion in activewear, reports $5.2M Q2 loss and sales drop

Published

3 days ago

September 13, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – Roots Corp. may have built its brand on all things comfy and cosy, but its CEO says activewear is now “really becoming a core part” of the brand.

The category, which at Roots spans leggings, tracksuits, sports bras and bike shorts, has seen such sustained double-digit growth that Meghan Roach plans to make it a key part of the business’ future.

“It’s an area … you will see us continue to expand upon,” she told analysts on a Friday call.

The Toronto-based retailer’s push into activewear has taken shape over many years and included several turns as the official designer and supplier of Team Canada’s Olympic uniform.

But consumers have had plenty of choice when it comes to workout gear and other apparel suited to their sporting needs. On top of the slew of athletic brands like Nike and Adidas, shoppers have also gravitated toward Lululemon Athletica Inc., Alo and Vuori, ramping up competition in the activewear category.

Roach feels Roots’ toehold in the category stems from the fit, feel and following its merchandise has cultivated.

“Our product really resonates with (shoppers) because you can wear it through multiple different use cases and occasions,” she said.

“We’ve been seeing customers come back again and again for some of these core products in our activewear collection.”

Her remarks came the same day as Roots revealed it lost $5.2 million in its latest quarter compared with a loss of $5.3 million in the same quarter last year.

The company said the second-quarter loss amounted to 13 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Aug. 3, the same as a year earlier.

In presenting the results, Roach reminded analysts that the first half of the year is usually “seasonally small,” representing just 30 per cent of the company’s annual sales.

Sales for the second quarter totalled $47.7 million, down from $49.4 million in the same quarter last year.

The move lower came as direct-to-consumer sales amounted to $36.4 million, down from $37.1 million a year earlier, as comparable sales edged down 0.2 per cent.

The numbers reflect the fact that Roots continued to grapple with inventory challenges in the company’s Cooper fleece line that first cropped up in its previous quarter.

Roots recently began to use artificial intelligence to assist with daily inventory replenishments and said more tools helping with allocation will go live in the next quarter.

Beyond that time period, the company intends to keep exploring AI and renovate more of its stores.

It will also re-evaluate its design ranks.

Roots announced Friday that chief product officer Karuna Scheinfeld has stepped down.

Rather than fill the role, the company plans to hire senior level design talent with international experience in the outdoor and activewear sectors who will take on tasks previously done by the chief product officer.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:ROOT)

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Business

Talks on today over HandyDART strike affecting vulnerable people in Metro Vancouver

Published

4 days ago

September 12, 2024

Anne Joseph

VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, are set to resume today as a strike that has stopped most services drags into a second week.

No timeline has been set for the length of the negotiations, but Joe McCann, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they are willing to stay there as long as it takes, even if talks drag on all night.

About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people unable to navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last Tuesday, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.

Hundreds of drivers rallied outside TransLink’s head office earlier this week, calling for the transportation provider to intervene in the dispute with Transdev, which was contracted to oversee HandyDART service.

Transdev said earlier this week that it will provide a reply to the union’s latest proposal on Thursday.

A statement from the company said it “strongly believes” that their employees deserve fair wages, and that a fair contract “must balance the needs of their employees, clients and taxpayers.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.

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Business

Transat AT reports $39.9M Q3 loss compared with $57.3M profit a year earlier

Published

4 days ago

September 12, 2024

Anne Joseph

MONTREAL – Travel company Transat AT Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year earlier as its revenue edged lower.

The parent company of Air Transat says it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31.

The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.

Revenue in what was the company’s third quarter totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.

On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.

Transat chief executive Annick Guérard says demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:TRZ)

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