Financial, consumer and industrial stocks combined to send the Toronto stock market lower Thursday morning, while U.S. markets demonstrated a lack of conviction after posting solid gains on Wednesday.

At midday, Toronto’s S&P/TSX composite index was off 23.11 points or 0.27% lower at 8552.3, while the TSX Venture exchange was ahead 13.97 or 0.9% at 1574.06.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrials index was down 9.74 points or 0.09% to 10469.83. The Nasdaq edged up 7.95 or 0.39% to 2028.93 and the S&P 500 index was ahead by less than a point to 1,144.81.

In Toronto, only three sub-indices, gold, technology and materials were ahead. Leading the way down were industrials, off 1.04%, telecom services, down 0.86% and financials, off 0.45%. Most of the big banks were trading lower.

The Canadian dollar was much stronger, surging 0.86 of a cent to US74.43¢ partly because of the U.S. dollar’s general weakness.

Stocks and the U.S. dollar were off as orders for U.S. durable goods dropped 1.6 per cent in May from the previous month. The weakness was broad-based, with demand slackening for cars, machinery, computers and other goods.

The decline, which came on the heels of a 2.6% decrease in April, was disappointing to economists, who had been expecting a 1.5% rebound.

In another report, U.S. new-home sales surged 14.8% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.37 million, an all-time monthly high. That showing, stronger than analysts expected, came after sales sagged by 7.9% in April.

In other economic news, the number of new people signing up for U.S. unemployment benefits last week rose by a seasonally adjusted 13,000 to 349,000, about 9,000 higher than expected.

Overseas, stocks surged in Hong Kong while Tokyo shares hit a two-month closing high as markets throughout Asia were boosted by Wall Street’s strong showing the day before.

Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average of 225 stocks jumped 163.59 points, or 1.41% to 11,744.15 – its highest close since the April 30 finish of 11,761.79.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 313.91 points, or 2.65% to 12,163.68.

London’s FTSE 100 index rose 6.8 points at 4,493.5.

Frankfurt’s DAX 30 was up 1.37% and the Paris CAC 40 added 0.8%.