Stocks in Toronto shook off the effects of massive selloffs dating back to last week, and marched ahead, largely on the strength of gold issues.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index strengthened 111.8 points to wind up business on Wednesday at 15,328.27
The Canadian dollar recovered 0.55 cents to 79.98 cents U.S.
Barrick Gold advanced 51 cents, or 3.6%, to $17.15, and Goldcorp rose 59 cents, or 3.7%, to $16.57.
The materials group, which includes precious and base metals miners, added strength, as the prices of gold, silver and copper posted strong gains. First Quantum gathered 85 cents, or 4.2%, to $21.07, while Agnico Eagle Mines hurtled higher $1.91, or 3.5%, to $57.23
Tech shares provided muscle, as The Stars Group gained 76 cents, or 2.4%, to $32.88, while BlackBerry picked up 29 cents, or 2%, to $15.13.
Utilities did not fare so well, as Fortis Inc. saw its price sink 89 cents, or 2.2%, $39.82. Hydro One ditched 23 cents, or 1.1%, to $20.26.
Telecoms were in reverse, as BCE lost 38 cents to $55.65, while TELUS Corp. slid 40 cents to $44.33.
Consumer staples also dipped as Restaurant Brands fell 71 cents, or 1%, to $72.11.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange popped 14.99 points, or 1.8%, to 836.17
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive on the day, as gold hiked 4.6%, materials were better by 3%, and information technology clicked higher 2.4%
The three laggards were utilities, down 1.1%, telecoms, wilting 0.6%, and consumer staples, off 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose sharply on Wednesday, notching a four-day winning streak as banks and tech carried major indexes higher. They rose despite a jump in bond yields.
The Dow Jones industrial average zoomed 253.04 points, or 1%, to close Wednesday at 24,893.49, after falling as much as 150 points.
Goldman Sachs contributed the most to the gains, rising 2.8%. The 30-stock index also erased all of its 2018 losses and posted its longest winning streak since Jan. 5.
The S&P 500 added 35.69 points, or 1.3%, to 2,698.63, with financials and tech each rising more than 1.5%. Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley all traded higher. The financials sector had its best day since Nov. 28. The index also turned positive for 2018.
The NASDAQ leaped 130.1 points, or 1.9%, to 7,143.62, as shares of Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Alphabet rose.
U.S. equities opened lower on the back of stronger-than-expected inflation data. The consumer price index rose 0.5% in January.
Economists expected a gain of 0.3%. Investors also digested weaker-than-expected retail sales for last month
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped, raising yields to 2.91% from Tuesday’s 2.84%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped $1.50 a barrel to $60.69 U.S.
Gold prices hiked $23.60 to $1,354.00 U.S. an ounce.
