Mining stocks led the way to a lower close on the Toronto stock market Monday, with buyers inclined to do little ahead of a major U.S. Federal Reserve meeting at the end of the week.
The S&P/TSX composite index declined 33.41 points to 12,048.82 while the TSX Venture Exchange was off 5.06 points at 1,246.82.
The Canadian dollar rose US0.08¢ to US$1.0093.
U.S. markets were mixed with the Dow Jones industrials down 33.30 points at 13,124.67.
The Nasdaq composite index added 3.40 points to 3,073.19, benefiting from a 1.9% rise in Apple's share value.
On Friday, a federal jury in California found that some of Samsung's products illegally copied features and designs from Apple's iPhone and iPad and ordered the South Korean concern to pay more than $1 billion in damages. Samsung Electronics shares fell 7.5% in Korean trading.
The S&P 500 index slipped 0.69 of a point to 1,410.44.
Central bankers will be in focus later in the week as the U.S. Federal Reserve holds its annual retreat in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Fed chairman Ben Bernanke delivers a keynote speech Friday while European Central Bank president Mario Draghi speaks on Saturday.
Expectations for more stimulus grew after the Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Bernanke had written a Republican lawmaker saying there was room for the central bank to do more to help the recovery.
"What's driving markets is this whole hope for stimulus, because really there's been nothing but a spate of OK news, but not great news," said John Stephenson, portfolio manager at First Asset Funds Inc., adding there will be disappointment if central bankers don't deliver.
There were also hopes that the Chinese government is ready to boost the world's second-biggest economy after Premier Wen Jiabao called for efforts to stabilize weakening exports.
The report from the official Xinhua news agency gave no indication of possible measures but Beijing previously has promised tax cuts and loans by state banks to help struggling exporters.
Export growth in July fell to just 1%, well below forecasts, from the previous month's 11.3% growth due to weak demand in debtcrippled Europe, China's biggest export market, and the United States, which is struggling with a sluggish recovery.
On the TSX, the base metals sector was down almost 1% as September copper shed an early advance to close down 1¢ at US$3.48 a pound.
