The Toronto stock market enjoyed slight gains to open Monday’s session, as commodity prices advanced amid conflicting views of China’s manufacturing sector.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index gathered 30.53 points to begin Monday at 12,680.95
The Canadian dollar gained back 0.36 cents to 96.75 cents U.S.
In corporate news, Centerra Gold Inc. said it expects the Kumtor mine in eastern Kyrgyzstan to achieve its 2013 production target despite last week’s shutdown caused by protests calling for nationalization of the operation. Centerra said on Sunday that the mine and mill had resumed operations.
Kumtor is the largest foreign-owned gold mine in the former Soviet Union.
Centerra shares gained 18 cents to $4.00
Drug manufacturer Patheon Inc. had a profit of $100,000 in the second quarter, an improvement from a 79.6-million loss a year earlier, when it recorded a $57.9-million impairment charge. Revenue rose 40% to $253.9 million, with about $54.6 million of the increase due to an acquisition. Patheon shares dipped 17 cents to $5.53
Canadian Pacific says there is no indication that a freight train derailment east of Sudbury on Sunday poses a danger to the public or the environment. CP said Sunday one of the rail cars derailed and as a result struck a trestle bridge near the community of Wanup. CP shares faded 33 cents to $137.51
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange improved 3.77 points to at 966.18
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were higher to start the session, led by gold, up 1.3%, consumer staples, up 1.1%, and information technology, up 0.8%
The four laggards were weighed by a 0.8% tumble in health-care stocks, while energy issues were 0.5% less energetic, and industrials faded 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged higher, while the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ slid on the first trading day of the month.
The Dow Jones Industrials began Monday up 64.31 points to 15,179.90
The S&P 500 index took on 3.62 points to 1,634.36. The tech-rich NASDAQ Composite inched higher 1.23 points to 3,457.14
But it's been a pretty stellar year for stocks so far. All three indexes are up between 14% and 16% for 2013.
The past few weeks have been a little rocky as investors fret about when the Federal Reserve might pull back on its bond buying program but most experts think stocks will continue to grind higher.
Investors head into the new month awaiting a pair of new economic reports and the latest monthly auto sales figures.
This morning, the Institute for Supply Management will release its monthly manufacturing index. Also, the Census Bureau will publish data on construction spending.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury sagged a mite, raising yields to 2.17% from Friday’s 2.16%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices gained 40 cents to $92.37 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices sank $1.50 to $1,391.50 U.S. an ounce
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