Canadian equities closed lower on Wednesday despite a pause in rising oil prices and bond yields cooling after a recent rally. Markets also reacted to the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate hike from a range of 3.5% to 3.75% to a new target rate of 3.75% to 4%. In other news, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen revealed that the European Union is open to welcoming Canada as its first-ever “associate member,” despite no such status currently existing within EU treaties.
US stocks also finished lower after the Fed’s announcement, as investors considered the prospect of a renewed interest rate hiking cycle over the next several months.
| TSX | 35,491.27 | -90.80 |  |
| TSXV | 896.10 | -4.88 | |
| CSE | 175.15 | -2.15 | |
| DJIA | 51,461.90 | -631.21 | |
| NASDAQ | 25,978.42 | -3.15 | |
| S&P 500 | 7,551.81 | -33.92 | |
The Canadian dollar traded for 71.48 cents US compared to 71.87 cents US on Tuesday.
US crude futures traded US$3.70 lower at US$102.10 a barrel, and the Brent contract lost US$3.23 to US$105.50 a barrel.
The price of gold was down US$27.92 to US$4,264.99.
In world markets, the Nikkei was up 438.90 points to ¥63,923.00, the Hang Seng was up 46.54 points to HK$24,713.78, the FTSE was up 30.34 points to ₤10,688.47, and the DAX was up 135.47 points to €25,537.75.