Stocks in Toronto gained on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would hold off on military strikes against Iranian energy facilities, easing fears of a major escalation in the Middle East war, now in its fourth week.
The TSX sprang 724.07 points, or 2.3%, to approached noon Monday at 32,041.48.
The dollar inched up 0.08 cents to 73.02 cents U.S.
Iran's Fars News Agency, citing a source, said there was no direct or indirect communication with the U.S. Meanwhile, Israel said its military was carrying out strikes on Iran.
Investors will monitor transportation headlines after an Air Canada Express CRJ-900 collided with a Port Authority emergency vehicle on the LaGuardia runway late Sunday, killing the pilot and co-pilot and injuring more than a dozen others, according to U.S. authorities.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange regained 32.6 points, or 3.6%, to 944.13.
All but two of the 12 TSX subgroups were higher midday Monday, led by gold and materials, muscling 4.7%, and information technology, better by 4.2%.
The two laggards were energy, sliding 1.5%, and utilities, off 0.02%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rallied Monday after President Donald Trump said the U.S. and Iran have held talks and that he was halting strikes on Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure, giving investors hope that the Middle East conflict that spiked oil prices and raised fears of a global recession was nearing an end.
The Dow Jones Industrials popped 1,042.50 points, or 2.3%, to 45,619.97.
The S&P 500 index hiked 129.99 points, or 2%, to 6,636.47
The NASDAQ pushed ahead 492.68 points, or 2.3%, to 22,140.78.
Before Trump’s comments, futures were pointing to more losses for equity markets under siege from skyrocketing oil prices and uncertainty about the duration of the Iran conflict. But after Trump’s comments, Dow futures briefly surged more than 1,000 points.
Trump’s announcement came as the Iran war entered its fifth week, with tensions escalating over the weekend on an ultimatum from the president.
Trump had threatened an attack on Iranian power plants in 48 hours if the Strait of Hormuz — a key shipping route for oil and other energy products — wasn’t reopened. Iran in turn said it would target U.S. infrastructure, including energy and desalination facilities in the Gulf, if the U.S. carried out its threat.
It was a broad rebound during the session, with cyclical shares such as banks and industrials surging as well as technology shares.
JPMorgan Chase climbed more than 2%, while Morgan Stanley was 3% higher. Caterpillar added 3%, while Deere climbed 1%. Nvidia and Apple were both higher by 2%.
Airline stocks such as Delta Air Lines flying 3% and United Airlines was up 4%, as the price of oil slid.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury flew, lowering yields back to 4.33% from Friday’s 4.38%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices waned $11.72 to $86.51 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices paled $134.30 to $4,440.60 U.S. an ounce.
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