Canada’s main stock index lost ground on Wednesday while U.S. markets rose amid sliding oil prices and hopes of a deal between the U.S. and Iran.
Ashish Utarid, assistant vice-president of investment strategy with IG Wealth Management, said consumer discretionary names were helping lift the market.
“You look at companies like Amazon up big, Tesla up big. These are big consumer discretionary names, Home Depot as well, it’s really showing a little optimism in the near term that energy prices and inflation will start to come down, but I’m not holding my breath right now.”
Amazon.com Inc. shares rose 2.47 per cent, while Tesla Inc. gained 1.56 per cent.
The S&P/TSX composite index was down 241.82 points at 34,412.05.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 182.60 points at 50,644.28. The S&P 500 index was up 1.24 points at 7,520.36 and added to its all-time high set the day before, while the Nasdaq composite was up 18.55 points at 26,674.73.
The July crude oil contract was down US$5.21 at US$88.68 per barrel. The move came amid hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf for deliveries again.
The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.6 per cent to US$92.25.
“It all comes down to the negotiations in the Middle East, so we’re hoping at least some type of resolution gets the energy markets back to where they were in February,” Utarid said.
“Of course, these things do take time to work its way into the market, but the market is pricing in some type of peace deal or negotiation in the near term.”
Stocks have been able to run to records despite the painful inflation and uncertainty caused by high oil prices largely because companies have reported surprisingly strong profits for the start of 2026, and the forecast is for them to continue.
Utarid said Canada’s large banks have been benefiting from the “knock-on effect” of higher oil prices, as it translates into higher production from the oil and gas sector, which feeds into lending.
“The financial market always benefits from these types of energy booms, and that’s being reflected in their earnings this quarter.”
Bank of Nova Scotia and BMO Financial Group gained 0.51 per cent and 0.85 per cent, respectively, after both lenders reported higher second-quarter profit and raised their dividends.
National Bank of Canada shares fell four per cent despite the fact it reported a second-quarter profit of $1.23 billion, up from $896 million a year ago, and raised its dividend.
Utarid said National Bank’s decline was “perplexing,” as it beat expectations for its overall results, but its personal and commercial banking segment fell short of expectations.
“Even though they had great income, great results, it just didn’t beat expectations and in this market if you’re not going to beat expectations or blow the analyst projections out of the water, your stock price gets … punished for not beating those expectations,” he said.
The Canadian dollar traded for 72.30 cents US compared with 72.40 cents US on Tuesday.
The August gold contract was down US$53.50 at US$4,481.50 an ounce.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2026.
Daniel Johnson, The Canadian Press. With files from The Associated Press.
