CANADA STOCKS-TSX dips as BoC holds rates, flags uncertainty over future policy path

(Updates throughout, adds details and analyst comments)

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TSX down 0.2% at 33,031.19 points

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Bank of Canada holds rates, says hard to predict future moves

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Technology index leads losses with 1.1% fall

By Utkarsh Hathi

Jan 28 (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index fell on Wednesday, dragged down by technology and ?financial shares, as the Bank of Canada kept interest rates unchanged while flagging uncertainty around future policy decisions.

The ?S&P/TSX Composite Index was down 0.2% at 33,031.19 points as of 10:21 a.m. ?ET. The central bank's governor Tiff Macklem said the high ?level of geopolitical and ?trade uncertainty made it difficult to predict the timing and direction of the next rate change. The ?Bank of Canada's policy rate currently stands ?at 2.25%.

"The pause removes a key driver that powered financials and rate-sensitive sectors higher, while persistent trade uncertainty keeps volatility elevated across ?export-heavy industrials and materials," Michael Constantino, CEO ?of Webull Canada, ?said in a note.

Financial stocks, which have the biggest weighting on the main index, dropped 0.9%, while the rate-sensitive industrials sector fell 0.8%.

The technology ?index dropped 1.1%, with IT consulting firm CGI sliding 3.9% after reporting first-quarter results. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 crossed 7,000 points for the first time, spurred by AI optimism after upbeat earnings from key Nvidia supplier SK Hynix and chip equipment giant ASML.

Investors also await the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision later ?in ?the day. The Fed is expected to hold rates steady, though the verdict is likely to be overshadowed by concerns over its autonomy amid President ?Donald Trump's attempts to gain greater control of monetary policy. TSX's gold-focused index jumped 1.5%, limiting overall declines, as gold prices moved past $5,300 per ounce early in the day, triggered by a sell-off in the U.S. dollar even as Trump brushed off January's slide.

The broader materials index, which includes metal miners, gained 0.7% as copper, aluminum and zinc also ?traded higher. Energy stocks were up 0.5% as oil prices hovered around a four-month high, lifted by supply concerns due to the slow resumption of operations at Kazakhstan's Tengiz oil field and production disruptions in ?the U.S following a winter storm. (Reporting by Utkarsh Tushar Hathi; Editing by Jonathan Ananda)