Stocks ended Friday relatively unchanged, with declining U.S. pharmaceuticals and Canadian financials cancelling out gains by commodity producers.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 11,491.91, down 7.34 points, or 0.1 per cent. The broader S&P 500 closed at 1,243.91, up 1.04 point, or 0.1 per cent. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 13,201.46, up 20.43 points, or 0.2 per cent.
Among U.S. stocks, Boeing Co. rose 1 per cent and Kraft Foods Inc. rose 0.9 per cent. Commodity producers were also strong, with DuPont up 0.8 per cent and Alcoa Inc. up 0.7 per cent.
However, Pfizer Inc. fell 1.1 per cent and Merck & Co. Ltd. fell 1 per cent on widespread concerns that it will be more difficult for companies to bring new medications to market, following a delay by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in approving a drug from AstraZeneca PLC.
Meanwhile, Bank of Montreal slumped 6.5 per cent after it agreed to buy U.S. regional bank Marshall & Ilsley Corp. in a $4.1-billion (U.S.) deal, raising concerns that the Canadian bank overpaid. Following announcement of the deal, Moody's Investors Service put BMO's long-term credit rating under review for possible downgrade, citing concerns of its own.
Other Canadian banks also retreated during the day. Royal Bank of Canada fell 0.7 per cent and Toronto-Dominion Bank fell 0.1 per cent.
However, commodity producers helped push the Canadian benchmark index into positive territory. Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. rose 0.6 per cent, Barrick Gold Corp. rose 0.8 per cent and Teck Resources Ltd. rose 3.9 per cent.
As well, Research In Motion Ltd. rose 1.8 per cent after it reported upbeat quarterly results on Thursday after markets closed. The BlackBerry maker earned $1.74 (U.S.) a share during its fiscal third quarter, topping expectations among analysts for earnings of $1.65 a share.