The Canadian market is down in negative territory in early afternoon trades on Friday, weighed down by losses in communications, real estate, consumer discretionary and materials sectors.
The mood is a bit cautious amid a lack of fresh data. Also, traders appear to be somewhat reluctant to hold positions after recent record highs, and are seen taking some profits.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index is down 100.97 points or 0.46% at 21,986.29 nearly an hour past noon.
On the economic front, preliminary data shows retail sales in Canada likely edged up by 0.1% in February. In January, retail sales declined by 0.3% from the earlier month, revised from the earlier estimate of a 0.4% contraction.
Retail sales excluding motor vehicle and parts dealers in Canada rose by 0.5% month-over-month in January, slightly down from 0.6% in the prior month.
Dayforce (DAY.TO), Nutrien (NTR.TO), Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO), Dollarama Inc (DOL.TO), CGI Inc (GIB.A.TO), Ag Growth International (AFN.TO) and BRP Inc (DOO.TO) are down 1.6 to 2.8%.
Canopy Growth Corporation (WEED.TO) is soaring nearly 40%. Aurora Cannabis (ACB.TO) is zooming 18%. Cannabis stocks are up, cheering news about the German government giving its final approval, legalizing cannabis. Effective April 1, cannabis will officially be recognized as a non-narcotic in Germany.
Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC.TO) is gaining 6%. Molson Coors Canada Inc (TPX.B.TO) and Boyd Group Services (BYD.TO) are up 2% and 1.3%, respectively.