Updates with morning prices, analyst comment
TSX falls 0.27% as technology and healthcare lead declines
Crypto miner Bitfarms down 2.7% after bitcoin slides
Curaleaf down 3% after preliminary fourth-quarter results
By Utkarsh Hathi
Jan 20 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Tuesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threats against eight European countries, linked to a dispute over Greenland, spooked investors and led to a broad decline in shares.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index .GSPTSE was down 0.27% at 33,001.39 points as of 10:35 a.m. ET, retreating from the previous session's record high.
Wall Street indexes also opened sharply lower on Tuesday, while the intensifying rhetoric from Trump weakened the dollar and sent U.S. Treasury yields to four-month highs.
Trump has threatened to implement 10% tariffs from February 1 on eight European countries until the U.S. is allowed to buy Greenland, with the duties potentially rising to 25% from June 1.
He has also threatened to slap 200% tariffs on French wines and champagnes, after reports that French President Emmanuel Macron will not join his Board of Peace initiative.
TSX's information technology sub-index .SPTTTK led declines on Tuesday, down 1.35% and on track for its sixth straight session of losses. Crypto miner Bitfarms BITF.TO slid 2.7% as bitcoin BTC= dropped to a one-week low.
Healthcare stocks .GSPTTHC incurred similar losses, with Curaleaf CURA.TO down 3% after the medical cannabis producer announced preliminary fourth-quarter results.
Overall losses were limited by gold miners .SPTTGD and the broader materials sector .GSPTTMT, which added 2% and 0.9%, respectively, as investors rushed for safe-haven assets amid rising geopolitical tensions. Gold XAU= and silver XAG= both notched fresh highs.
Energy stocks .SPTTEN were up 0.4%, as oil prices LCOc1, CLc1 were lifted by a weaker dollar and better-than-expected fourth-quarter Chinese economic data.
While Canadian stocks may not be directly exposed to a potential U.S.-Europe tariff war, investors are not sure if the country will get "dragged into this and get painted with the same brush as Europe," said Greg Taylor, chief investment officer at Purpose Investments.
"That'll probably hold some people back from investing in Canada right now."
(Reporting by Utkarsh Tushar Hathi in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)
((utkarshtushar.hathi@thomsonreuters.com))
