By Amal S and Nichola Saminather
August 26 (Reuters) – The main Canadian stock index paused on Thursday after hitting a new closing high in the previous session, as bank stocks fell amid concerns over the impact of a further tax hike on companies proposed by the ruling Liberal Party.
Toronto Stock Exchange S & P / TSX Composite Index .GSPTSE fell 83.17 points, or 0.4%, to 20,504.15 points, after finishing at a new closing high on Wednesday.
Although major Canadian lenders reported higher-than-expected profits this week, bank stocks fell as the market digested the impact of the new tax proposal. On Wednesday, the Liberals announced they would hike the rate from 15% to 18% on all income over C $ 1 billion ($ 793 million) and impose a special dividend on them.
âThere is some digestion in the market with what happened yesterday,â said Brian Madden, portfolio manager for Goodreid Investment Counsel. The banks index .GSPTXBA fell 1.4% on Thursday.
Investors are eagerly awaiting a speech by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at the annual event in Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Friday for clues about the timeline of the monetary cut.
âThis is a forum where the Fed has often hinted at or announced a bold new direction in monetary policy. There is perhaps a slight dismay that it is announcing a cut or something like that tomorrow, although I don’t think she will, âMadden added. .
Recovering from last week’s losses, the benchmark was set to post its seventh consecutive month of gains driven by heavyweight tech stocks .SPTTTK.
STRONG POINTS
* Royal Bank of Canada RY.TO stocks ended down 0.4%, Toronto-Dominion Bank TD.TO lost 2.4% and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce CM.TO fell 2.1%.
* The biggest winning percentages on the TSX were ARC Resources ARX.TO, up 4.8%; Tourmaline Oil Company TOU.TO, up 4.0%; and Seabridge Gold MER.TO, up 3.3%.
* Americas lithium LAC.TO was the big loser, with a drop of 5.3%, followed by Intertape Polymer Group ITP.TO, down 2.6%; and real things TRUE., down 2.5%.
(Reporting by Amal S in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Jonathan Oatis)
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