CANADA STOCKS-Toronto shares subdued ahead of BoC minutes
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Brookfield Reinsurance to acquire Argo Group in $1.1 bln deal
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BOC policy meeting minutes awaited
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S&P/TSX composite index flat
By Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan
Feb 8 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index was nearly flat on Wednesday, with gains in industrial stocks offsetting losses in healthcare shares, ahead of the release of minutes from the Bank of Canada's (BoC) latest policy meeting.
At 9:57 a.m. ET (1457 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was up 12.27 points, or 0.06%, at 20,737.27.
The BoC will release at 1:30 p.m. ET the minutes from its January policy meeting, where it raised interest rates by 25 basis points but said it would hold off on further moves to let the impact of past increases sink in.
"Investors are starting to anticipate that rates will no longer rise or maybe even get cut. But the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Canada are very concerned that if they lower rates too quickly, they'll end up stoking a second round of inflation," said Scott Blair, chief investment officer at CWB Wealth.
"So all year, investors are going to be oscillating between hope that rates start to fall and reality that they may stay higher for longer."
Following a key recommendation from the International Monetary Fund, the BoC agreed to release the "Summary of Deliberations", similar to meeting minutes released by other central banks.
The industrials sector gained 0.6%, while the energy sector rose 0.4% as crude prices rose for a third straight day.
In company news, financial services firm Brookfield Asset Management rose 3.3% after the company's reinsurance unit said it would acquire insurer Argo Group International Holdings in a deal valued at $1.1 billion.
Titan Medical Inc plunged 63.6% as the medical device maker said it will prioritize the sale of all or some of its assets, and remains open to other cost-cutting measures. (Reporting by Shristi Achar A and Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
