Stocks in Toronto piled up gains Thursday, as gold and consumer stocks popped, counteracting losses in energy and health-care.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index boosted 63.14 points to end Thursday at 16,328.96
The Canadian dollar swooned 0.71 cents at 76.36 cents U.S.
Gold stocks moved higher, as Barrick Gold climbed 17 cents, or 1%, to $17.13, while Kinross Gold marched up eight cents, or 1.7%, to $4.93.
Among consumer discretionary issues, Magna International triumphed $1.32, or 1.6%, to $85.86, while Gildan Activewear gained 16 cents to $37.79.
In consumer staples, Tim Hortons parent Restaurant Brands International acquired 72 cents to $78.90, while Metro climbed 58 cents, or 1.3%, to $43.90.
Energy stocks, though, trailed off, as Canadian Natural Resources subtracted 86 cents, or 2%, to $42.02, while Questerre Energy gave back a penny, or 1.6%, to 60 cents.
Health-care stocks were ailing, as Canopy Growth shed $1.25, or 3.1%, to $38.61, while Aurora Cannabis dipped seven cents to $8.95.
On the economic ledger, Statistics Canada reported new house prices in Canada were unchanged for a second consecutive month, despite increases in some pockets across the country.
Italy will not ratify the European Union's free trade agreement with Canada because it does not ensure sufficient protection for the country's specialty foods, new Agriculture Minister Gian Marco Centinaio said in a newspaper interview.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange regained 1.09 points to 761.26
All but three of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive on the day, as gold surged 1.5%, consumer discretionary climbed 1.3%, and consumer staples gained 1%,
The three laggards were energy, sinking 0.4%, health-care, off 0.3%, while telecoms flopped 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
The NASDAQ composite jumped to an all-time high on Thursday as dealmaking activity lifted technology and media shares.
The Dow Jones Industrials faded 25.89 points to 25,175.31, as a decline in bank stocks offset Disney's gains.
Shares of J.P. Morgan Chase dropped 1.8%, and Goldman Sachs pulled back 0.1%. Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley also fell.
The S&P 500 gained 6.86 points to 2,782.49
The NASDAQ jumped 65.34 points to 7,761.04, with Facebook also reaching a record high. Netflix and Alphabet also contributed to the index's gains.
Investors cheered dealmaking news, as shares of 21st Century Fox rose 2.1% after Comcast announced a bid to buy several major units of the media giant for $65 billion. Comcast's bid tops Disney's, who agreed to a $52.4-billion deal. Comcast shares rose 4.6% while Disney gained 1.3%
The news comes a day after a judge approved AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner. Last year, the Justice Department sued to block the merger, arguing it would potentially lead to higher prices for the consumer. AT&T shares rose 0.9%, while Time Warner gained 1%.
Shares of J.P. Morgan Chase dipped 2% and Goldman Sachs pulled back 0.5%. Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley also traded lower.
Bank stocks fell after the European Central Bank said it would hold off on raising rates until next year, sending Treasury yields lower.
Thursday's moves come after U.S. stocks closed lower after the Federal Reserve announced Wednesday a new rate hike and indicated that two other increases are possible until the end of the year. As a result, the Dow fell about 120 points as traders expect that the higher rates will bring higher costs for companies.
The Commerce Department said retail sales rose 0.8% in May, well above an economist estimate of 0.4%. That also marked the biggest gain in retail sales since November.
The U.S. Labor Department also reported that weekly jobless claims fell to a more-than-44-year-low last week, pointing to a tightening jobs market.
Prices for the benchmark for the 10-year U.S. Treasury were lower, raising yields to 2.94% from Wednesday’s 2.98%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices recovered 31 cents to $66.95 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices jumped $5.20 at $1,306.50 U.S. an ounce.
