Markets in Toronto ended the day positive on strength in the industrial and tech sectors,
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 65.61 points to end Thursday’s session at 16,543.01
The Canadian dollar shrugged off 0.57 cents at 75.36 cents U.S.
BlackBerry sparked the rise in tech stocks with a gain of 54 cents, or 4.1%, to $13.70, while Constellation Software leaped $15.28, or 1.4%, to $1,123.04.
Industrials proved mighty, too, as Canadian Pacific Railways chugged along $6.11, or 2.5%, to $254.94, while Bombardier gathered 10 cents, or 2%, to $5.02.
Among utilities, Fortis Inc. gained 38 cents to $43.02.
Health-care issues were not so hale, as Canopy Growth surrendered $1.23, or 3.5%, to $33.75, while rival Aphria docked 48 cents, or 4.3%, to $10.77.
First Quantum Minerals toppled $1.42, or 7.4%, to $17.70, and to qualify as among the top decliners on the TSX. Shares of Lucara Diamond were down six cents, or 2.8%, to $2.10.
Consumer discretionary stocks suffered a mildly black eye, as Magna International gave up $1.53, or 1.9%, to $79.26.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada found 454,100 people received regular Employment Insurance benefits during May, virtually unchanged from April.
What’s more, a report from ADP suggests Canada lost 10,500 jobs in June, driven by a decline in hiring in the finance and real estate sector.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange docked 4.41 points to 713.17.
Seven of the 12 TSX subgroups were stronger, with industrials and information technology each clicking 1.2% higher, and utilities were better by 0.9%.
The five laggards were health-care, dropped 1.9%, while materials ducked back 0.8%, and consumer discretionary stepped back 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks fell on Thursday amid criticism of the Federal Reserve by President Donald Trump. A decline in bank shares also pushed the broader market down.
The Dow Jones Industrials plunged 134.79 points to 25,064.50, with Travelers Cos. and American Express lagging.
The S&P 500 lost 11.13 points to 2,804.49, with financials dropping more than 1%.
The NASDAQ ended the day off 29.15 points to 7,825.30
Bank shares fell broadly as interest rates declined. J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America and Morgan Stanley all declined by more than 1%.
IBM shares rose more than 3% after the Dow component reported earnings and revenue that surpassed expectations. American Express, another Dow member, posted a profit that was just above estimates, while sales came in slightly below estimates. Shares of American Express fell 2.7%.
Shares of eBay fell more than 10% after the company posted revenue and guidance that disappointed investors. Earnings, however, topped estimates. Tech giant Microsoft is scheduled to report earnings after the close.
Just over 13% of S&P 500 companies have reported calendar second-quarter earnings thus far, with 85.1% of those firms surpassing analyst expectations, and analysts expecting 20% year-over-year profit growth for the second quarter.
The earnings season comes as tensions between the U.S. and some of its key trade partners are simmering. On Thursday, European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said the EU is making a list of goods it could target as a way to retaliate against potential tariffs on European cars.
Malmstrom’s comments come after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to hike tariffs on European car imports to 20% from 2.5% last month. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said, however, it was "too early" to say whether the U.S. will impose tariffs on cars.
Prices for the benchmark for the 10-year U.S. Treasury gained ground, lowering yields to 2.84% from Wednesday’s 2.88%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices stayed afloat 57 cents to $69.33 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices doffed $5.50 at $1,222.40 U.S. an ounce.
