Equities in Toronto opened higher on Tuesday, as oil prices surged and many countries loosened coronavirus-related restrictions to help economic recovery.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index hurtled skyward 171.21 points to kick off business Tuesday at 14,916.25.
The Canadian dollar gathered 0.30 cents to 71.30 cents U.S.
Thomson Reuters reported higher quarterly sales and operating profit that fell slightly short of Wall Street estimates on Tuesday, while cutting its full-year sales outlook due to disruption to the global economy from the coronavirus pandemic.
Thomson shares doffed $1.40, or 1.4%, to $97.16.
Altacorp Capital cut the target price on Air Canada to $46.00 from $50.00. The Maple Leaf Airline saw its shares go airborne 43 cents, or 2.4%, to $18.06.
National Bank of Canada cut the target price on Capital Power Corp. to $39.00 from $42.00. Capital Power acquired 54 cents, or 2.1%, to $26.30.
TD Securities raised the target price on Kinaxis to $165.00 from $130.00. Kinaxis shares gathered $2.65, or 1.8%, to $149.24.
Italy, Spain, Nigeria and India, together with Ohio and other U.S. states, began allowing some people to go back to work and opened up construction sites, parks and libraries.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada says this country’s merchandise exports fell 4.7%, while imports declined 3.5%. As a result, Canada's trade deficit widened from $894 million in February to $1.4 billion in March.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange gained 1.84 points to 477.91.
All but two of the 12 TSX subgroups were higher in the first hour, with energy surging 5.1%, consumer discretionary up 2.1%, and real-estate picking up 1.5%.
The lone laggards were gold, down 0.9%, and materials, doffing 0.02%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose sharply on Tuesday as investors bet the U.S. economy could start to reopen again. Oil prices increased for a fifth straight day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 289.07 points, or 1.2%, to 24,038.83.
The S&P 500 climbed 41.31 points, or 1.5%, to 2,884.34.
The NASDAQ Composite popped 140.51 points, or 1.6%, to 8,851.22.
Shares of companies that would benefit from a reopening of the economy led the way higher. MGM Resorts traded nearly 2% higher while Starbucks and Ford Motor each rose more than 3%.
Airlines also gained after taking hit on Monday. American traded 2.1% higher while Delta advanced 1.3%. United Airlines climbed 1%.
Crude’s surge sparked a 4.6% rally in the S&P 500 energy sector. Noble Energy rose more than 9% to lead the sector higher while Apache and Occidental Petroleum both gained more than 7%.
Investors weighed fears of a second wave of coronavirus cases against efforts to reopen businesses and loosen restrictions. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Monday some of the state’s retailers will be allowed to offer curbside pickup starting Friday.
Meanwhile, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that the daily number of hospitalizations and new deaths are declining, suggesting the state is on "the other side of the mountain." He added, however, that officials are not seeing as steep of a decline as they had hoped.
Prices for the 10-Year Treasury hesitated, raising yields to 0.66% from Monday’s 0.63%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained $3.92 to $24.31 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices shrank $9.70 to $1,703.60 U.S. an ounce.
