TORONTO – Canada’s main stock index pulled back after topping 30,000 for the first time Tuesday as tech stocks weighed it down, with the S&P/TSX composite ending the day down more than 140 points.
Brent Joyce, chief investment strategist and managing director, BMO Private Wealth, said the performance of Canadian equity markets was heavily influenced by Shopify shares trading lower.
Shares of Shopify Inc. fell 4.46 per cent on Tuesday, taking the most points off the index.
“Everybody’s trying to get their heads around what artificial intelligence means in the months and years ahead. And so small pullbacks like this are healthy and normal and not unusual,” Joyce said.
Earlier in the day, the TSX broke above the 30,000 mark before losing ground to close 143.35 points lower than Monday’s close, at 29,815.63.
“I think these psychological round-number figures, on any given day they might have an impact. It’s a bit more narrative I think than it is fundamentals,” Joyce said.
He added that cresting the 30,000 threshold “turns heads and makes headlines.”
“Markets that have advanced to the extent that they have, the TSX being one of the best performers on the planet on a year-to-date basis, certainly could be a catalyst for a little bit of profit taking,” Joyce said.
Earlier on Tuesday, Brian Madden, chief investment officer with First Avenue Investment Counsel, said he had expected the TSX to move beyond 30,000 but “it may have come sooner” than he thought.
“For us, as medium and long-term investors, we know we’re going to pass through psychological milestones and round numbers every so often, but it’s eyes forward, eyes on the prize. And thinking about the macroeconomic and corporate profit fundamentals that ultimately drive these prices and price appreciation, and we like what we’re seeing here,” he said.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 143.35 points at 29,815.63.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 88.76 points at 46,292.78. The S&P 500 index was down 36.83 points at 6,656.92, while the Nasdaq composite was down 215.50 points at 22,573.47.
Investors also digested comments from Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem, who said the country waited too long to reduce its economic dependence on the United States and is paying the price today.
Speaking in Saskatoon on Tuesday, he warned that U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have hit trade-sensitive industries hard in Canada and put economic growth on a permanently lower trajectory.
“I think it’s a fair comment from the Bank of Canada … I think we’ve all come to some collective realization as a country that we got a bit comfortable with our biggest customer south of the border,” Joyce said.
“I think the main key here is that Canada still is the most preferred trading partner after nine months into the Trump administration, and average tariff rates that are below six per cent.”
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.30 cents US compared with 72.38 cents US on Monday.
The November crude oil contract was up US$1.13 at US$63.41 per barrel. The December gold contract was up US$40.60 at US$3,815.70 an ounce.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2025.
— With files from The Associated Press.
Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD, TSX: SHOP)
