The Canadian stock market started the new week on a negative note, ending its nine-day winning streak, as falling commodity prices and heightened concerns about increasing AI (artificial intelligence) competition from China weighed on investor sentiment. These factors, along with uncertainties about the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada’s upcoming monetary policy actions, drove the S&P/TSX Composite Index down by 179 points, or 0.7%, to close at 25,289.
Despite positive movement in many real estate and industrials stocks, big intraday declines in many other key sectors, including energy, mining, and technology, pulled the TSX lower.
Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks
Celestica (TSX:CLS) stock crashed by 28% to $125.70 per share, registering its worst single-day percentage decline since it began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange in June 1998. This massive selloff came even after the analysts at Bank of Montreal and Cormark Securities raised their target prices on CLS stock.
While there was no company-specific news to explain the sharp drop, it could be a result of profit-taking after Celestica stock’s strong rally in recent years, combined with broader concerns about increasing competition in AI, which could also impact the electronics manufacturing sector. Notably, CLS stock skyrocketed by 1,192% in the four years ended on December 31, 2024. Following yesterday’s sharp drop, it now trades with a 5.2% year-to-date decline.
TransAlta, Capital Power, NexGen Energy, and Cameco were also among the day’s worst-performing TSX stocks, with each tanking by at least 15%.
Despite the broader market selloff, TFI International, Algonquin Power & Utilities, Telus, and RioCan REIT climbed by at least 2.5% each, making them the session’s top-performing TSX stocks.
Based on their daily trade volume, Royal Bank of Canada, Enbridge, TransAlta, TC Energy, and Bank of Montreal were the five most active stocks on the exchange.
TSX today
After rallying for several days in a row, gold and silver prices fell sharply yesterday and extended their declines in early Tuesday trading, which could put further pressure on TSX mining stocks at the open today.
While no major domestic economic releases are due, Canadian investors may want to closely monitor the U.S. consumer confidence data this morning. Meanwhile, TSX may remain volatile in today’s trading as investors remain cautious ahead of the Fed’s and Canadian central bank’s rate decisions due tomorrow.
On the corporate events front, the Canadian food and pharmacy retailer Metro will announce its latest quarterly results on January 28. Street analysts expect the company to report earnings of $1.09 per share for the December quarter with revenue of $5.1 billion.