(Updates at market close)
* TSX ends down 0.6% at 34,736.09
* Posts its lowest closing level since June 11
* Materials group falls 3.7% as metal prices decline
* Energy loses 3.2% as oil settles 3.9% lower
By Fergal Smith
June 24 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell to a near
two-week low on Wednesday as the price of oil moved back toward
its level before the start of the Iran war, with energy and
metal mining shares leading the market lower.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX Composite Index
ended down 191.29 points, or 0.6%, at 34,736.09,
marking its lowest closing level since June 11.
* U.S. oil settled 3.9% lower at $70.34 a barrel as
more stranded oil tankers exited the Strait of Hormuz, easing
supply concerns.
* "As some of these supply constraints continue to ease
we're seeing the (commodity) prices start to come back off to
where they were before the war," said Colin Cieszynski, chief
market strategist at SIA Wealth Management. "It's not just that
they're coming off, they're coming off quite significantly."
* The energy sector was down 3.2%, while the
materials group, which includes metal-mining stocks,
ended 3.7% lower.
* The price of gold fell 2.6% and copper was
down 3.4% as rising expectations of Federal Reserve interest
rate hikes boosted the U.S. dollar.
* Shares of NovaGold Resources ( NG ) tumbled 14.4% as the
company reported a wider second-quarter net loss.
* The Nasdaq and S&P 500 also ended lower as concerns about
high-flying tech stock valuations persisted.
* Still, the TSX's technology sector was up 3.3%
as shares of e-commerce company Shopify ( SHOP ) gained 6.1%.
* Consumer staples was another standout, adding
2.4%.
* Seven of the TSX's 10 major sectors notched gains.
* The index was on track to advance 6% in the second
quarter, which would be its eighth straight quarterly advance.