Equities in Canada’s largest centre moved into the Thanksgiving long weekend with momentum to spare, thanks largely to strength in resource stocks.
The TSX came out of its midday red by day’s end, and gained 28.27 points to 16,562.81. The gain on the week was a hefty 424 points, or 2.6%.
The Canadian dollar added 0.37 cents to 76.18 cents U.S.
Energy stocks provided the biggest yoke on the market, with Enerplus Corporation sliding 10 cents, or 3.6%, to $2.67, and Cenovus Energy down 16 cents, or 2.9%, to $5.33.
Among financials, TD shares were poorer $1.21, or 2.9%, to $61.50, while Brookfield Asset Management docked 73 cents, or 1.6%, to $46.15.
In communications, Quebecor doffed 74 cents, or 2.2%, to $32.86, while Shaw Communications skidded 41 cents, or 1.7%, to $23.55.
Gold soared, on the other hand, with Eldorado Gold climbing $1.48, or 10%, to $16.27, and Wesdome Gold picking up $1.03, or 8%, to $13.91.
Issues among other resources also finished strong, with Dundee Precious Metals better by 88 cents a share, or 9.1%, to $10.60, while Fortuna Silver Mines gathering 70 cents, or 8.3%, to $9.18.
In tech stocks, Lightspeed POS popped $1.63, or 3.5%, to $48.74, while Docebo prospered $1.81, or 3.8%, to $50.12.
Stock markets are shuttered on Monday, in Canada, for Thanksgiving Day, and for Columbus Day south of the border.
On the economic docket, Statistics Canada reported that, following an increase of 246,000, or 1.4% in August, employment rose by 378,000, or 2.1%, in September. The unemployment rate declined 1.2 percentage points to 9.0% in September, down from the peak of 13.7% in May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange surged 16.91 points, or 2.4%, to 732.25, a hike of more than 23.6 points, or 3.34% on the week.
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were negative on the day, with energy tumbling 1.3%, financials down 0.9%, and communications slumping 0.8%.
The four gainers were led by gold, rocketing 3.6%, materials, 3.2% more solid, and information technology, growing 0.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose on Friday to end their best week in months as President Donald Trump signaled support for a bigger coronavirus aid package.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average came off its highs of earlier in the day, but registered a gain of 161.39 points to finish off the week at 28,586.90.
The S&P 500 added 30.31 points to 3,477.18.
The NASDAQ advanced 158.96 points, or 1.4%, to 11,579.94.
Microsoft jumped 2.5%, and Salesforce climbed 2.2%, to lead the Dow higher. Consumer discretionary and tech were the best-performing S&P 500 sectors, advancing more than 1% each.
For the week, the Dow jumped 3.3% and posted its biggest one-week gain since August. The S&P 500 gained 3.8%, and NASDAQ was up 4.6%, for the week. Both benchmarks had their best weekly performance since early July.
Some sources reported the administration has raised its offer for a new aid package to $1.8 trillion from $1.6 trillion. However, Trump later told radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh that he "would like to see a bigger stimulus package frankly than either the Democrats or Republicans are offering."
To be sure, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said it is "unlikely" that a new aid package would be passed in the three weeks prior to the Nov. 3 election.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters on Thursday she would not back aid to U.S. airlines without a broader stimulus package, something Trump hinted earlier in the week he’d support. Meanwhile, Trump told Fox Business on Thursday morning that the administration and Democrats were "starting to have some very productive talks."
Investors also digested news on the coronavirus treatment front. GenMark Diagnostics said after the close Thursday that the Food and Drug Administration gave the company emergency clearance to run a test that screens for the flu, coronavirus and other viruses.
Plus, shares of Gilead rose 1.7% after a study showed its anti-viral treatment remdesivir showed that the drug cut recovery time by five days compared to patients who received a placebo. The drug also reduced fatality in patients needing low flow oxygen.
Prices for the 10-Year Treasury fell slightly, raising yields to 0.78% from Thursday’s 0.77%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices were down 64 cents at $40.55 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices spiked $39.00 to $1,934.10 U.S. an ounce.
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