CANADA STOCKS-TSX steady as energy shares rise, materials slip
(Adds details on stocks and sectors throughout; updates prices)
* TSX rises 9.89 points, or 0.06 percent, to 16,327.54
* Six of the index's 10 main groups fall
* Energy group gains 0.7 percent
* Materials sector falls 0.7 percent
TORONTO, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index was little changed on Tuesday as shares of energy and marijuana producers rose, balancing a dip in the materials group which was pressured by a drop in gold prices.
* At 10:45 a.m. EST (15:45 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index rose 9.89 points, or 0.06 percent, to 16,327.54.
* The energy group gained 0.7 percent as the price of crude oil rose to its highest since May 2015.
* Shares of Encana Corp advanced 1.7 percent to C$16.84 after the company estimated fourth-quarter production from its core assets would top its own forecast, while U.S. crude prices were up 0.4 percent at $61.99 a barrel.
* The largest percentage gainer on the TSX was Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust, which rose 20.8 percent after it said it will be bought by a Blackstone Group affiliate in an all-cash deal valued at about C$2.48 billion.
* Marijuana producers were also among the biggest gainers. Canopy Growth Co climbed 8.3 percent to C$119.19 and Aphria Inc was up 10.4 percent at C$24.27.
* Six of the index's 10 main groups fell.
* The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, fell 0.7 percent as gold miners lost ground.
* Spot gold retreated 0.8 percent to $1,311.53 an ounce, weighed down by a firmer U.S. dollar and buoyant global stock markets.
* Nutrien Ltd, the fertilizer company formed last week by a merger of Potash Corp of Saskatchewan and Agrium, fell 1.5 percent to C$65.87. (Reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Susan Thomas)
