Stocks in Toronto found their way back into positive territory Thursday, as gains in resource and telecom stocks lifted equities.
The S&P/TSX Composite gained 32.26 points to close Thursday at 14,565.83
The Canadian dollar settled 0.16 cents to 76.4 cents U.S.
Gold stocks led the advance, as Kinross Gold leaped 22 cents per share, or 3.4%, to $6.67, while Barrick Gold jumped 72 cents, or 2.8%, to $26.72.
In telecoms, BCE took on 31 cents to $62.75, while Rogers Communications rocketed $2.07, or 3.9%, to $55.67.
Consumer staples put a weight on things, as Loblaws fell 53 cents to $71.35, while Empire Company, which runs the Sobeys food store chain, stepped back six cents to $20.40.
Financials were somewhat poorer as well, as Royal Bank lost 34 cents to $80.38, while Manulife Financial slipped six cents to $17.95.
Among industrials, Bombardier shares were flat by day’s end, at $1.19.
On the economic scene, Statistics Canada revealed that those drawing regular employment insurance totaled 544,900 in May up 4,800, or 0.9%, from the previous month, while wholesale trade rose 1.8% to $55.9 billion in May.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange popped 11.44 points to 766.2
Seven of the 13 subgroups gained ground, with gold up 3.2%, materials better by 1.9%, and telecoms improving 1.2%
The half-dozen laggards were weighed most by consumer staples and financials, dropping 0.3% each, while industrials faded 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed lower Thursday, snapping the Dow Jones Industrials’ nine-day winning streak, as oil prices weighed and the market consolidated ahead of next week's meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee.
The Dow skidded 82.39 points to close at 18,512.64, as Intel led the index down and Caterpillar had the most positive impact.
The S&P 500 dropped 7.03 points to 2,165.99, and health-care and utilities were the only sectors in the green.
The NASDAQ moved down 12.07 points to 5,077.87, after having its highest close of the year a day earlier.
The Fed meets next week, and recent Fed funds futures rates showed an uptick in investors' rate hike expectations
Second-quarter results came in mixed Thursday.
Southwest Airlines, Sherwin-Williams, and Intel were among the notable disappointments. Shares of intel fell more than 3.5% after it beat analysts' expectations for earnings on Wednesday, but revenue came in lower than expected. Fellow chipmaker Qualcomm beat Wall Street expectations and issued strong forward guidance, sending the stock up nearly 7%.
General Motors posted record second-quarter profits Thursday, sending shares up more than 3%. The stock is pacing for its twelfth consecutive positive day for the first time ever.
Ebay spiked more than 10% for its best daily performance since October 2015, after posting earnings a penny per share above estimates and raising its full-year sales forecast. Biogen helped boost the NASDAQ and S&P, with the stock up more than 6% after posting positive results.
Bank results continued to surprise this week, with Morgan Stanley reporting earnings of 75 cents U.S. per share versus consensus expectations of 59 cents, according to Thomson Reuters. Morgan Stanley joined Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America on the list of U.S. financial institutions topping second-quarter profit forecasts.
Of the 70 S&P 500 companies reporting as of Wednesday, 67% beat estimates. Starbucks, AT&T, Capital One, Visa, Schlumberger, Boston Beer and Chipotle report after the bell.
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to a three-month low last week, in a sign that the labour market down south is stabilizing.
The U.S. Labor Department reported that initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 253,000. Economists expected claims to rise to 265,000.
Prices for the 10-year Treasury regained lost ground, lowering yields to 1.56% from Wednesday’s 1.58%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gave back $1.15 a barrel to $44.60 U.S.
Gold prices strengthened $14.70 to $1,334.00 U.S. an ounce.
