TSX Today: What to Watch for in Stocks on Monday, March 23

A third straight selloff dragged the TSX deeper into correction territory, with today’s tone expected to be shaped by soaring oil prices and a fresh slump in gold amid geopolitical crisis.

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Key Points
  • TSX plunged 1.7% to 31,317, extending a three‑day drop to nearly 5% and finishing the week down 3.8%.
  • Materials, tech, and healthcare led the selloff as gold plunged about 10% and miners fell, though Orla Mining jumped on strong fourth-quarter results.
  • Watch Middle East developments and the oil and gold price divergence for direction.

Canadian equities continued to tank for a third consecutive session on Friday as aggression from both sides in the escalating Middle East conflict dimmed investor confidence and heightened fears of prolonged geopolitical instability. The S&P/TSX Composite Index plunged by another 528 points, or 1.7%, for the day to settle at 31,317 — extending its three-day decline to nearly 5% and concluding the week with a 3.8% drop.

All key market sectors, except consumer staples, ended the session in the red, with materials, technology, and healthcare stocks leading the TSX selloff. Notably, gold spot prices tanked by nearly 10% over the last week, expanding the precious metal’s month-to-date losses to about 15%. As a result, shares of gold mining firms came under heavy selling pressure, dragging the materials sector sharply lower.

tsx today

Top TSX Composite movers and active stocks

Mining stocks such as AbraSilver Resources, Americas Gold and Silver, Lithium Americas, and Vizsla Silver slipped by at least 6.8% each, making them the worst-performing TSX stocks for the day.

Despite this weakness, Orla Mining (TSX: OLA) jumped 4.5% to $19.29 per share to become the day’s top-gaining TSX stock. This rally in OLA stock came after the company reported strong fourth-quarter 2025 results, including gold production of 95,405 ounces and record free cash flow of US$133.4 million.

Interestingly, Orla’s quarterly revenue rose to US$378.5 million, while its net profit reached US$79.2 million. For the full year, Orla produced 300,620 ounces of gold, exceeding its 2025 production guidance. The company also ended the year with US$420.8 million in cash and US$35.8 million in net cash, strengthening its balance sheet. Investors appeared encouraged by this solid operational performance and continued progress across Orla’s growth projects in Canada, Mexico, and Nevada.

Similarly, SECURE Waste Infrastructure, Maple Leaf Foods, and CES Energy Solutions also climbed by at least 2.2% each, making them among the session’s top performers on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

According to the exchange’s daily trade volume data, Canadian Natural Resources, I-80 Gold, Montage Gold, Cenovus Energy, and Denison Mines were the five most active stocks on the exchange.

TSX today

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures prices continued to trade close to their multi-year highs in early morning trading on Monday after IEA (International Energy Agency) officials warned against relying on constrained supply sources amid ongoing geopolitical disruptions. While future LNG supply growth may improve the outlook, there are limited short-term solutions to ease current market tightness.

Meanwhile, gold prices fell by as much as 9% in early trading, extending last week’s sharp pullback in precious metals. The continued divergence between elevated oil prices and falling bullion could lead to uneven sector performance on the TSX today.

Although no major economic or corporate releases are due this morning, Canadian investors will continue to closely monitor geopolitical developments and their impact on global energy markets. Any further escalation in the Middle East could drive additional volatility in crude prices and broader risk sentiment.

Market movers on the TSX today

Fool contributor Jitendra Parashar has positions in Canadian Natural Resources. The Motley Fool recommends Canadian Natural Resources, Ces Energy Solutions, and Secure Waste Infrastructure Corp. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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