Canadian stocks exhibited strength early on Tuesday but turned negative by mid-morning, remaining in the red for the rest of the session as investors sought direction.
The U.S. producer price inflation data revealed a higher-than-expected rise in producer prices for April, leading to concerns that the Federal Reserve might maintain elevated interest rates for a longer duration.
The benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index dipped by 15.83 points, or 0.07%, closing at 22,243.34. After reaching a high of 22,309.03 initially, the index touched a low of 22,182.88 during the session.
Hudbay Minerals (HBM.TO) soared 14.1% after reporting first-quarter net earnings of $18.5 million, down from the fourth quarter's $33.5 million.
Tucows Inc (TC.TO) surged 13%, while First Quantum Minerals (FM.TO) and Evertz Technologies (ET.TO) saw gains of 8.7% and 8.6%, respectively.
Other notable performers included Docebo Inc (DCBO.TO), Ag Growth Corporation (AFN.TO), Celestica Inc (CLS.TO), Teck Resources (TECK.A.TO), Cameco Corporation (CCO.TO), BRP Inc (DOO.TO), Stella-Jones (SJ.TO), and Kinaxis Inc (KXS.TO), which each gained between 1% and 3%.
Conversely, GFL Environmental Inc (GFL.TO) declined by 3.6%, and MTY Food Group (MTY.TO) fell by 2.6%. Additionally, Descartes Systems (DSG.TO), Molson Coors Canada Inc (TPX.B.TO), Constellation Software (CSU.TO), RB Global Inc (RBA.TO), goeasy (GSY.TO), and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CP.TO) recorded losses ranging from 1% to 2%.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported an increase in car registrations to 172,104 units in March, up from 136,622 units in February.
Furthermore, another report from Statistics Canada indicated that wholesale sales in Canada fell by 1.1% month-over-month in March, slightly better than the initial estimate of a 1.3% decline.