Toronto stocks slide as weak earnings weigh

By Shashwat Chauhan

(Reuters) -Canada's main stock index fell on Wednesday, with energy and technology stocks leading the decline, as disappointing earnings weighed ahead of keenly awaited U.S. inflation data and the outcome of midterm elections.

At 10:49 a.m. ET (1549 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was down 150.3 points, or 0.76%, at 19,510.01. U.S. stocks also fell amid uncertainty over the outcome of the election. [.N]

Control of Congress was up for grabs with several races too tight to call, leaving it unclear whether Republicans would crack the Democrats' tenuous hold on power.

"Typically, the markets tend to favor when the Congress is in split, meaning that for next two years, there's no material legislation, but I don't think the Canadian market will have too much impact", said Kevin Headland, co-chief investment strategist at Manulife Investment Management.

A slew of earnings reports also kept markets under pressure.

Absolute Software Corp plunged 15.2% after its first-quarter results missed expectations, dragging the broader tech index down 2.0%.

Energy stocks fell 2.0% as crude oil prices slipped on data showing U.S. crude stockpiles rose more than expected and on China demand woes. [O/R]

The healthcare index helped cap losses, gaining 1.3% after pot producer Canopy Growth Corp reported a smaller second-quarter core loss, helped by higher sales and cost-cutting measures. The stock rose 10.9%.

Lending company EQB Inc jumped 10.9% after its third-quarter earnings beat estimates, while ATS Automation Tooling Systems fell 7.2% on weak quarterly results.

TC Energy Corp gained 2.5% after it said it was looking to sell C$5 billion ($3.7 billion) worth of assets to repay debt and fund new projects and reported an 8% rise in quarterly profit.

(Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Shailesh Kuber)

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