Roundup: Canadian stock market flat amid Fed concerns over U.S. growth

Canada's main stock market in Toronto was little changed Wednesday as the newly-released U.S. Federal Reserve's statement lowered the outlook of U.S. labor market and economy.

Toronto Stock Exchange's benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index inched higher 1.27 points, or 0.01 percent, to 15,347.34 points.

The index stayed in the green with a tiny gain. Energy and health care were up 0.9 percent and 1.13 percent respectively, while the other six major sectors reported losses, after the newly- released Fed statement said U.S. economic growth has "slowed" since the last Fed meeting in March.

Investors considered the statement as a negative message for the Canada's economy since the U.S. economic growth provided strong support for its economy to defend against the negative impact of the plunging oil prices.

Financials was lower 0.12 percent as Toronto-Dominion Bank dipped 0.07 percent to 56.08 Canadian dollars (about 46.64 U.S. dollars).

Info and tech led the TSX losers by shedding 1.95 percent Wednesday when Open Text Corp. slumped 6.29 percent to 62.46 Canadian dollars per share after the software provider reported disappointing quarterly results after the closing bell on Tuesday.

Metals and mining was also slightly lower 0.14 percent when its heavyweight Teck Resources Ltd. decreased 0.39 percent to 17.90 Canadian dollars.

However, a rise in gold shares helped boost the trading sentiment. Detour Gold Corp. jumped 7.5 percent to 12.9 Canadian dollars as the miner received consensus recommendation of "Buy" from brokerages following its quarterly earnings report on Tuesday. The world's biggest gold miner Barrick also ticked up 1.44 percent to 16.22 Canadian dollars apiece.

Energy, another heavily-weighed sector, helped push up the index as well. Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. added 3.6 percent to 12.66 Canadian dollars as the oil prices rallied on Wednesday.

In corporate news, Canada's biggest aircraft and railway maker Bombardier Inc. climbed 2.07 percent to 2.47 Canadian dollars per share when it was reported that China train makers eyed controlling stake in Bombardier. Isabelle Rondeau, director of Communications of Bombardier, told Xinhua on Wednesday that " Bombardier Transportation is not for sale."

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc., a heavyweight of the healthcare sector, surged 3.67 percent to 256.30 Canadian dollars per share after the drug maker announced Wednesday morning a strong quarterly profit report, showing that its total revenue increased 16 percent year on year to 2.2 billion U.S. dollars.

On the economic front, Statistics Canada reported Wednesday that the industrial product price index was up 0.3 percent in March, largely as a result of higher prices for energy and petroleum products.

On the currency front, the Canadian dollar extended a modest gain on Wednesday to 0.8317 U.S. dollar, from 0.8313 U.S. dollar on Tuesday, after the greenback showed weakness against the major currencies following Fed's statement and the weaker-than-expected U.S. GDP report. Endite