TSX falls as Shopify forecast hammers tech stocks

Canada's main stock index fell on Wednesday, pressured by technology stocks following Shopify's downbeat forecast, while higher bond yields and declining commodity prices further weakened sentiment.

At 9:51 a.m. ET (13:51 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index TSX was down 176.16 points, or 0.79%, at 22,114.46.

The information technology sector TTTTK dropped 5.1%, on track to log its worst day in over 14 months. The sector was pulled down by a 19.0% fall in e-commerce giant Shopify SHOP after it forecast its slowest quarterly revenue growth in two years.

"The earnings in the last few days have not been coming strong. Shopify, a big one this morning for Canada, came with earnings which seemed okay, but the guidance was lighter," said Greg Taylor, chief investment officer at Purpose Investments.

Mining stocks in the materials sector TTMT also fell 0.6%, tracking a decline in gold and copper prices. Energy shares TTEN followed with a 0.3% decline, as oil prices fell over 1%.

Three out of eleven sectors traded upwards, with consumer staples (.GSPTTCS) leading gains with a 1.1% rise.

The index is set to snap a five-day winning streak. It began its rally after the U.S. Federal Reserve indicated that its next move would be to cut rates at its last meeting, along with a slowdown in U.S. job growth in April.

"Markets came through 5 days in a row, and now it is going to be a bit of chopped here as we try to see what the next thing is," Taylor added.

Meanwhile, yield on the Canadian government 10-year bond (CA10YT=RR) rebounded after five sessions of declines, mirroring its U.S. counterpart and pressuring equities.

In corporate news, forestry firm Stella-Jones SJ rose 8.9% after its first-quarter results beat analysts' estimates.