S&P/TSX Composite Index Extends Thursday's Losses With Most Sectors Lower

10:31 AM EDT, 10/23/2026 (MT Newswires) -- The S&P/TSX Composite Index extended Thursday's losses with nearly all sectors lower Friday mid-morning, with investors rattled by fears of escalating violence in the Middle East. Shares in the industrials and financials sectors were the weakest performers, down 1.6% and 1.7%, respectively. The strongest performer on last look was the energy sector, up 1.9% as oil prices top $100 a barrel. Investors are pulling back amid signs of spreading violence in the Middle East. The New York Times reported earlier this week that the US and Israel were drawing up plans to strike Iran after the US mid-terms early next month. Iran has vowed to respond to any attacks, and the regime said it would not confine its response to retaliatory attacks, Al Jazeera reported. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a full lockdown of the occupied West Bank after two Israeli soldiers were killed in the city of Hebron. Israelis go to the polls next week to elect a new government. In economic news, Statistics Canada said retail sales increased 1.2% month on month, to CA$74.6 billion in August, led by increases at motor vehicle and parts dealers. Core retail sales, excluding autos and gas, rose 1.1% in August. The agency provided a flash estimate of a 0.7% retail sales increase in September. "Combined with the manufacturing flash (+0.1%) and the decline in hours worked, the economy could struggle to grow in September. Still, the quarter is on track to come in at a respectable 2.0% annualized growth rate following a solid 3.3% a.r. in Q2," wrote BMO Senior Economist Shelley Kaushik in a note. A softer September also pointed to slowing momentum heading into the fourth quarter, Kaushik added.