The Toronto stock market held onto a strong advance Thursday afternoon.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 101.27 points to end Thursday at 12,674.35
The Canadian dollar shed 0.39 cents to 95.09 cents U.S.
The gold sector ran up, as Barrick Gold Corp. rose 61 cents to $20.57. The Toronto-based company announced earlier Thursday that it will receive $300 million U.S. from the sale of three mines in Western Australia to South Africa-based Gold Fields Ltd.
The energy sector rose as Suncor Energy was up 53 cents to $35.38.
Outside of the resource groups, the industrials component was up with Canadian Pacific Railway ahead $4.42, or 3.6%, to $128.33.
The financial sector climbed as Manulife Financial improved by 37 cents to $17.49.
On matters economic, Statistics Canada reported that June retail sales declined 0.6%, partially offsetting the gain in May.
The nation’s number-crunchers also said the number of those on regular employment insurance edged up during June by 4,500, or 9%, to 512,300, after a decline in May.
The number of beneficiaries has, most recently, been trending downward. Compared with June 2012, the number of people receiving regular benefits declined 6.4%.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange strengthened 9.72 points to 935.04
All but one of 14 Toronto subgroups were still positive throughout the session, led by metals and mining, up 4.1%, global base metals, up 3.4%, and materials, up 2.5%.
Only consumer staples missed the party, trading down, however slightly.
ON WALLSTREET
Trading at the NASDAQ OMX exchange resumed later Thursday afternoon following a three-hour halt due to a technical glitch.
The Dow Jones Industrials took on 66.19 points to 14,963.70, thus ending a six-session losing streak, its worst stretch since July 2012.
The S&P 500 index was in the green 14.15 points to 1,656.95. The NASDAQ was higher 38.92 points to 3,638.71
The NASDAQ is home to more than 2,700 stocks, particularly technology giants such as Apple, Google and Microsoft. Trading at the NASDAQ was halted around 12:14 p.m. ET.
The exchange said the pause was due to issues with "quote dissemination." Options trading was also halted, and the New York Stock Exchange and the BATS exchange had also halted all NASDAQ securities.
NASDAQ resumed trading first on Atlantic American at 3 p.m. ET, following a 15-minute quote only period. All other securities began trading at 3:25 p.m. ET, also following a 15-minute quote only period.
The quote only period, which it typically uses during initial public offerings, allowed the Nasdaq to accept buy and sell orders, and investors were also able to cancel orders during the period.
NASDAQ said it would not cancel open orders, but said customers who wished to cancel their orders could have done so before trading resumed.
Despite troubles at the Nasdaq, the broader stock market moved higher Thursday. Positive economic data from both China and Europe gave investors some optimism. European markets moved solidly higher, while Asian markets ended mixed.
Abercrombie & Fitch shares plummeted after the teen-oriented clothing retailer reported a slump in quarterly sales and profits and a terrible outlook.
American Eagle Outfitters also had a lousy earnings report this week and hopes weren't high for Aeropostale's earnings after the bell either.
GameStop bucked the trend in retail. The video game seller's stock soared on better-than-expected earnings and strong guidance around the promise of new gaming consoles. Traders made light of how the stock, which has been a popular target of short sellers, continues to go higher despite many bears trying to talk it down.
In the world of tech, Hewlett-Packard shares dropped after the company announced its latest earnings on Wednesday, showing that PC sales are still in the dumps. HP is still top stock in the Dow this year though, as investors have high hopes for the turnaround plan of CEO Meg Whitman.
Gap and Pandora Media release results after the market close
A survey of European purchasing managers pointed to signs that the economy may be stabilizing there. Better-than-expected data from Chinese factories gave glimmers of hope for Asia and the broader global economy.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury fell, raising yields to 2.90% from Wednesday’s 2.86%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices were up $1.20 to $105.05 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices gained $4.70 to $1,374.80 U.S. an ounce.
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