(Updates with market opening prices)

By Ragini Mathur

Jan 24 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index was subdued

on Friday after eight successive winning sessions as falling

energy stocks offset gains elsewhere.

The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index

was down 0.06% at 25,419.84, and was hovering near a

six-week high.

For the week, TSX was set to gain over 1%, helped by

strong U.S. corporate earnings and hopes for a business-friendly

government under President Donald Trump. The index is up 2.8%

for the month.

Among sectors, materials rose 0.8% in tandem

with gold prices. Information technology also added

0.6%, while healthcare advanced 1.1%.

Energy was the biggest drag on the index,

falling over 1% as oil prices remained under pressure after

Trump said he would be asking Saudi Arabia and OPEC to bring

down oil prices.

"As we get into the tail end of January, especially

today, markets might just consolidate after a strong week, with

central banks meeting next week in focus," said Ian Chong,

Portfolio Manager at First Avenue Investment Counsel.

The Bank of Canada is set to make its key interest rate

decision on Wednesday. Traders expect a 91% chance for a 25

basis-point rate cut at the meeting.

The central bank has cut rates by a cumulative 1.75

percentage points since June 2024.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is also set to meet on

Wednesday and is

expected to leave rates unchanged

.

Among individual stocks, Aya Gold & Silver ( AYASF ) rose

the most at 3.8% and NovaGold Resources ( NG ) fell 3.5%,

pushing it to the bottom of the index.