Equities in Canada’s largest centre inched higher in early trade on Friday on the way to a 1.9% gain on the week, with banks and gold miners pushing higher as geopolitical tensions boosted demand for bullion.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gained 12.98 points to begin the week’s last session at 15,467.90
The Canadian dollar hiked 0.23 cents to 81.34 cents U.S.
A strike that began Sunday at a Canadian General Motors Co plant is having a ripple effect, with the company temporarily laying off workers at three parts facilities on Thursday.
GM shares opened in New York 25 cents higher to $39.35 U.S. Friday
Credit Suisse raised the price target on ECN Capital to $4.75 from $4.50. The stock acquired 20 cents a share, or 5.3%, to $3.97.
Canaccord Genuity raised the target price on Tahoe Resources to $11.00 from $10.75. Tahoe shares advanced six cents to $6.96.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada reported Friday that the consumer price index rose 1.4% on a year-over-year basis in August, following a 1.2% increase in July. On a seasonally-adjusted monthly basis, inflation grew 0.2% in August, matching the increase in July.
What’s more, retail sales in Canada increased 0.4% to $49.1 billion in July. Higher sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers and food and beverage stores were the main contributors to the gain.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange picked up 2.73 points to 778.60
The 12 TSX subgroups were evenly split to begin the session, with gold higher 0.5%, consumer staples stronger by 0.4%, and financials better by 0.2%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed most by health-care, sliding 0.5%, information technology, off 0.3%, and utilities, down 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded around flatline Friday after opening lower amid rising geopolitical tensions with North Korea.
The Dow Jones Industrials lost 15.82 points to 22,343.41, with Apple continuing to add to its weekly decline and UnitedHealth trading lower.
The S&P 500 sank 0.55 points to 2,500.05, with financials pulling back from its climb earlier in the week. Shares of JPMorgan, Citi, and Morgan Stanley traded lower Friday, but all remain up over 2.5% since Monday.
The NASDAQ fell 2.37 points to 6,420.32, as Amazon and Microsoft weighed.
Apple shares continued to drag on markets, falling 1.5% Friday. The stock has dropped 5.5% since Monday. Many believe the stock's slip is spurred by poor reviews of the company's new iPhone 8 and Apple Watch products. Despite the stock's recent performance, it remains up 32% since January.
On the flip side, shares of Boeing added 0.6% as the dispute the company and its Canadian rival, Bombardier, heats up. The two are battling over a potential defense sale worth about $5 billion U.S.
Aerospace and defense stocks have surged this week amid rising global tensions. Shares of Orbital ATK and Aerojet Rocketdyne traded 0.1% and 4.6% higher respectively. Both companies are up about 20% since Monday.
On the world scene, North Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Ri Yong Ho said Thursday that the country may consider testing a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean. If successfully conducted, the test would be North Korea's first nuclear test beyond its borders.
Rhetoric between the United States and North Korea escalated this week as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un criticized U.S. President Donald Trump, calling the president's United Nations address earlier this week "unprecedented rude nonsense."
Trump responded in kind on Twitter, calling Kim "a madman who doesn't mind starving or killing his people."
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note jumped, lowering yields to 2.25% from Thursday’s 2.28%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices dropped a penny a barrel to $50.54 U.S.
Gold prices gained $3.60 to $1,298.40 U.S. an ounce
