(Updates to close)
July 6 (Reuters) - Canada's resource-heavy benchmark stock
index fell on Monday, pressured by a drop in gold and crude oil
prices, while investors assessed domestic and U.S. economic data
to gauge the Federal Reserve's monetary policy path.
The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX Composite index
fell 0.18% to 35,212.32 points.
* The materials and global gold indexes
fell 2.2% and 1.7%, respectively, as bullion prices retreated
. Stocks of Canadian miners I-80 Gold ( IAUX ) fell 7%,
while those of Eldorado Gold ( EGO ) and Endeavour Silver ( EXK )
were down 2.7% and 3.5%.
* Canada's energy index dipped 1.2%, tracking a
fall in crude prices earlier in the day, after
OPEC+ agreed to further raise output targets from August even as
exports through the Strait of Hormuz continued to recover,
increasing prospects of elevated global supplies.
* "With inflation being high, a little bit of market
volatility, and with a lot of geopolitical conflict, you would
say that sets up for a pretty good market for gold, and that
just hasn't been the case so far," said Josh Sheluk, CIO and
portfolio manager at Verecan Capital Management.
* "And all of a sudden, we're talking about a potential glut
(in the oil market). It just goes to show how unpredictable,
especially commodity markets, are over short-term timeframes,"
Sheluk said.
* An S&P Global survey showed that Canada's services economy
contracted in June as geopolitical uncertainty and elevated
prices hurt demand. However, the recent slide in crude prices
has raised expectations of the economy returning to growth.
* Last week, the S&P/TSX Composite index hovered near a
record high, supported by easing tensions in the Middle East and
fading Fed rate-hike expectations following a soft U.S. labor
market report.
* Traders are currently pricing in just one U.S. rate hike
by the end of this year, according to LSEG data, while the Bank
of Canada is expected to keep interest rates steady this year,
with its next policy decision due on July 15.