Canada's main index rose on Thursday, lifted by the heavyweight energy sector as crude prices rallied over 4% following a suspected tanker attack near Iran.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index added 26.45 points to greet noon on Thursday at 16,253.69
The Canadian dollar inched up 0.07 cents to 75.05 cents U.S.
The main index has risen 1.3% so far this month, rebounding from the worst monthly show of the year in June that was sparked by fears of a global economic slowdown following a sudden escalation in U.S.-China trade tensions.
Dollarama jumped $3.63, or 8.6%, among the biggest gainers, to $45.84, after the discount retailer raised its full-year comparable sales forecast and posted a stronger-than-expected rise in quarterly revenue.
The largest percentage gainer on the TSX was Alacer Gold Corp, which jumped 45 cents, or 12.1%, to $4.17, after the company raised 2019 forecast for oxide production.
Hexo fell 62 cents, or 7.3%, the most on the TSX, to $7.91, after the cannabis products distributor's third-quarter results
The second biggest decliner was The North West, down 84 cents, or 2.8%, to $29.70.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada said its new housing price index remained unchanged in April for the third straight month.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange slid 0.26 points to pause for noon at 591.36
Seven of the 12 Toronto subgroups were higher, with consumer discretionary stocks climbing 1.6%, energy better by 0.9%, and gold, shinier by 0.8%.
The five laggards were saddled most by communications, down 1.8%, health-care, sliding 1.7%, and consumer staples, off 0.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose on Thursday, building on a strong June rally, lifted by gains in Disney and energy shares.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average came off its highs of the morning, but remained buoyant 58.63 points to 26,063.46, as Disney shares outperformed
The S&P 500 was up 10.63 points at 2,890.47, led by the energy and tech sectors.
The NASDAQ Composite gained 46.8 points to 7,839.52.
The major indexes were all up more than 4% for the month, after notching sharp losses in May.
Chipmakers rebounded after posting sharp losses in the previous session, boosting tech shares. Applied Materials progressed 0.7%, and Micron Technology rose 0.8% Apple shares traded 0.4% higher. On Wednesday, the tech sector snapped a six-day winning streak.
Disney shares contributed to the gains, rising more than 2% after an analyst at Morgan Stanley raised his price target on the stock to $160 per share from $135. The analyst cited the company’s new streaming service, noting it could give its global subscriber numbers a boost..
Energy prices soared, as Hess and Phillips 66 were the best performers within the sector, rising more than 2.7% each.
Still, lingering trade tensions kept investors on edge. Expectations that trade officials from the U.S. and China will clinch a deal on the sidelines of a G-20 meeting in Osaka on June 28-29 have been fading in recent days.
President Donald Trump, who has said he still has plans to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month, has repeatedly threatened to escalate an already months-long trade war by putting tariffs on almost all of the remaining Chinese imports that are not already impacted by U.S. charges.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury gained a bit Wednesday, lowering yields to 2.11% from Wednesday’s 2.12%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices was ahead 99 cents to $52.13 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained six dollars at $1,342.80 U.S. an ounce.
