North American stock markets had a mixed session on Thursday, with Canadian stocks getting hit by the continuing weakness in energy and commodities and U.S. stocks benefiting from better-than-expected economic data.
Europe's debt crisis continued to loom over investors, with the head of the IMF warning that problems are escalating and won't be solved by one group of countries.
On the economic front, the U.S. Labour Department said jobless claims fell by 19,000 last week to 366,000, which represents the fewest since May 2008. In addition, manufacturing reports out of the U.S. showed a small uptick.
In Toronto, the S&P/TSX lost 38.63 points, or 0.33 per cent, to close at 11504.42. Advancing issues matched declining stocks, with health care and utilities on the rise and materials and consumer staples on the descent.
Finning International was among the worst performers after the company's financial forecast disappointed. TransCanada climbed 1 per cent and West Fraser Timber rose nearly 2 per cent.
Research In Motion is sinking in the post-market, down about 7 per cent. Its latest earnings beat the Street, but the company issued a dissappoining outlook.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average advanced 45.33 points, or 0.38 per cent, to 11868.81. The broader S&P 500 edged forward 3.93 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 1215.75.
Shares of FedEx surged 8 per cent, after the company reported higher-than-expected profit and said it is buying 27 new Boeing aircraft to update its fleet for fuel efficiency and cost savings. Freeport McMoran, the world's largest producer of copper, saw its shares slide 2 per cent as investors continued to move out of risky assets such as commodities.
The price of gold fell for a fourth day, as the European crisis sent more investors seeking shelter in the U.S. dollar. The precious metal ended the session down $16.10 (U.S.) an ounce to $1,570.80. Gold futures are at a five-month low after bullion sank below its 200-day moving average on Wednesday, for the first time since January 2009.
Oil fell $1.49 to $93.46 a barrel, but the loonie managed to recoup most of Wednesday's losses, rising 0.45 cents to 96.65 cents.