* TSX ends down 8.81 points at 21,025.78
* Bank of Canada holds policy rate at 5%
* Materials group falls 1.1%
* Energy adds 1.6%; oil settles higher
Jan 24 (Reuters) – Canada’s main stock index edged lower
on Wednesday as a drop in gold prices weighed on mining shares
and after the Bank of Canada left its policy rate on hold, with
the index retreating after it touched its highest intraday level
in twenty months.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index
fell 8.81 points to 21,025.78. Earlier in the session,
it touched its highest level since May 2022.
The materials group, which includes precious and base metals
miners and fertilizer companies, lost 1.1% as data showing
strong U.S. business activity weighed on the price of gold
, with the precious metal falling 0.8%.
The industrial and consumer discretionary sectors both fell
0.5% but both…
