Recovering prices for oil sparked another positive outcome for stocks in Toronto, seeming more confident in themselves these days than their neighbours to the south.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index strengthened 59.06 points to finish Wednesday trading at 15,657.63
The Canadian dollar rose 0.29 cents at 75.02 cents U.S.
Energy issues led the parade, as MEG Energy surged 49 cents, or 7.8%, to $6.75, while EnCana Corporation jumped 95 cents, or 6.4%, to $15.85.
Stars in the health-care field included Valeant Pharmaceuticals, ahead 58 cents, or 4%, to $14.92, while Concordia International ended the day unchanged at $2.16.
Materials stocks were also in the green, primarily Lundin Mining, better by 16 cents, or 2.2%, to $7.55, while Canadian Natural Resources rocketed $1.04, or 2.4%, to $43.86.
Tech stocks did not fare so well, however, as BlackBerry docked six cents to $9.36, and Celestica plummeted 62 cents, or 3.2%, to $18.89.
In the consumer staples field, Loblaw Companies deleted 37 cents to $72.33, while Metro fell 40 cents, or 1%, to $41.07.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange leaped 7.93 points, or nearly 1%, to close Wednesday at 812.05
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive on the day, with energy sprinting 2.1%, health-care moving forward 1.3%, and materials better by 0.6%
The five laggards were weighed by information technology, slumping 0.5%, consumer staples, trailing 0.4%, and industrials, off 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed mixed Wednesday, with energy leading, as investors digested economic data and the start of the United Kingdom's divorce from the European Union.
The Dow Jones Industrials dipped 42.18 points to 20,659.32, after Tuesday’s 150-point surge. UnitedHealth led decliners and Wal-Mart was the top advancer.
The S&P 500 squeezed out a gain of 2.56 points to 2,361.13, with energy leading six sectors higher and financials lagging.
The NASDAQ Composite stayed buoyant 22.41 points to 5,897.55
Stocks are on track to record a mixed month, with the NASDAQ poised for a gain of around 1%, while the S&P and Dow tracked for monthly losses of around 0.2% and 0.7%, respectively.
In economic news, weekly mortgage applications held flat. Pending home sales data showed a 5.5% increase in February.
Britain's ambassador to the EU, Tim Barrow, handed the official letter triggering Article 50 to European Council President Donald Tusk. This commences the country's two-year exit process from the trading bloc.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note gained some ground, lowering yields to 2.38% from Tuesday’s 2.42%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices strengthened $1.04 to $49.41 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices sank three dollars at $1,252.60 U.S. an ounce.
