P.M. market numbers: October 20, 2009

| North American markets | International markets | Bonds | Currency | Commodities |

The Toronto stock market drifted to a flat close Tuesday as mixed economic news from the U.S. overshadowed the latest positive earnings reports.

The S&P/TSX composite index slipped 0.27 of a point to 11,538.12 as investors were unsurprised by the Bank Canada’s decision to hold the line on interest rates at 0.25%.

But currency traders sent the Canadian dollar tumbling almost two cents US as the central bank strongly indicated a hike won’t happen until the middle of next year – and delivered a clear warning of the damage being done to the economy by the surging currency.

The loonie closed down 1.98 cents at 95.17 cents US after earlier sinking as much as 2.17 cents.

The central bank cautioned that heightened volatility and the sharp rise in the Canadian dollar “are working to slow growth.”

On the TSX, the market was balanced by rising telecom stocks and falling gold companies.

The gold sector lost 0.8% despite the December bullion contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange edging up 50 cents to US$1,058.60 an ounce.

The energy group was down 0.4% as the November crude contract on the Nymex eased 52 cents to US$79.09 a barrel.

In other economic data, Statistics Canada’s composite leading index – a snapshot of future economic activity – rose by 1.1% in September, its fourth straight gain. And the August reading was revised up from 1.1% to 1.2%. In September, seven of the 10 components advanced, led again by the stock market and the housing index.

New York markets were lower as investors balanced mixed news from the housing sector with more strong earnings news.

The Dow Jones industrial average declined 50.71 points to 10,041.48.

The Nasdaq composite index pulled back 12.85 points to 2,163.47 and the S&P futures was down 6.85 points to 1,091.06 despite well-received earnings reports from Apple Inc. and Texas Instruments.

(THE CANADIAN PRESS)

North American markets

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	Close	Change	YTD
Dow Jones	10,041.48	-50.71 or -0.50%	+14.41%
S&P 500	1,091.06	-6.85 or -0.62%	+20.79%
NASDAQ	2,163.47	-12.85 or -0.59%	+37.19%
TSX Composite	11,538.12	-0.27 or -0.00%	+28.38%

International markets

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	Close	Change	YTD
Nikkei	10,336.84	+100.33 or +0.98%	+16.67%
Hang Seng	22,384.96	+184.50 or +0.83%	+55.59%
SENSEX	17,223.01	-103.00 or -0.59%	+78.53%
FTSE 100	5,243.40	-38.14 or -0.72%	+18.25%
CAC 40	3,871.45	-20.91 or -0.54%	+20.31%
DAX	5,811.77	-40.79 or -0.70%	+20.82%

Bonds

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Bonds	$Current	$Previous	%Yield
Cdn. 10-year bond	102.77	102.03	3.41
Cdn. 30-year bond	118.22	117.32	3.91
U.S. 10-year bond	102.39	102.06	3.34
U.S. 30-year bond	105.72	105.34	4.16

Currency

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BoC Close	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.9516	0.9715
US $	1.0508	1.0293

Euro Spot Rate	Today	Previous
Canadian $	0.6374	0.6501
Euro	1.5688	1.5381

Commodities

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Gold	AM	PM
London Gold Fix ($US)	$1064.00	$1061.75

Oil	Close	Change
WTI Crude Future (US)	$79.11	-$0.85 or -1.06%

(10/20/09)