Morning Market Breakdown, March 1: TSX Riddled with Red

The S&P/TSX Composite Index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) had a heavy day on the market on Wednesday (February 28), losing 228.47 points by close to end the day at 15,442.68.

Thursday morning (March 1) the TSX continued to face adversity as it hit 15,417.16, a 25.52-point drop.

Wednesday’s TSX struggle came primarily from Valeant Pharmaceuticals (TSX:VRX). The company predicted a less-than-profitable 2018 for investors, causing its share price to drop 11.6 percent. The telecom sector also dragged the TSX down, as Shaw Communications (TSX:SJR.B) lost 42 cents and TELUS (TSX:T) fell 31 cents.

Despite the TSX’s hard day, Wednesday was fruitful for the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (INDEXTSI:JX), which closed at 829.12, a 13.94-point gain. Thursday morning saw a tiny slump from Wednesday’s close, with the index dropping 5.17 points to 823.95.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) saw its second consecutive close in the red on Wednesday, as it dropped 380.83 points to 25,029.2. The Dow continued to slip on Thursday morning, reaching 25,005.52, a 23.68-point fall.

The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) also took a loss on Wednesday with a 30.45-point drop, ending the day at 2,713.83 points. The S&P fell slightly on Thursday morning, losing 1.96 points and landing at 2,711.87.

Note: All numbers shown above were accurate as of 10:00 a.m. EST.

Daily metals

Though gold closed around US$1,317.90 an ounce on Wednesday, it had a rough start to Thursday morning when it hit US$1,307.60 by 10:00 a.m. EST. Silver closed around US$16.32 an ounce on Wednesday, but took a blow Thursday morning as it dropped to US$16.11 by 10:00 a.m. EST.

Copper closed at US$3.11 per pound Wednesday, but had slipped to US$3.08 by 10:00 a.m. EST on Thursday.

Major miner news

• First Majestic Silver (TSX:FR): The company released its Q4 and full-year results for 2017, with highlights including total production of 16.2 million silver equivalent ounces.

• GFG Resources (TSX:GFG): GFG Resources, a Saskatchewan-based mining company, completed its acquisition of Rapier Gold. Through the acquisition, GFG has gained 565 square kilometers of gold assets in Timmins, Ontario.

• General Moly (TSX:GMO): General Moly announced that it will soon be exploring for zinc, copper and silver at Mt. Hope in Nevada, where the company already has its flagship project. This decision came following the discovery of a possible high-grade silver and copper exploration target during a review of historic drill results.

Don’t forget to follow us @INN_Resource for real-time updates!

Securities Disclosure: I, Olivia Da Silva, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.