Markets in Toronto opened higher on Tuesday as investors remained calm despite the first U.S. government shutdown in 17 years.
The S&P/TSX composite index regained 22.78 points to open Tuesday at 12,809.97
The Canadian dollar slid 0.12 cents to 96.92 cents U.S.
Intact Financial Corp said it will take catastrophe losses of $199 million in the third quarter due mainly to a series of bad weather events and a fiery train derailment that devastated the town of Lac-Megantic, Quebec in early July. Intact shares descended 31 cents to $61.61
CIBC cut the rating on Brookfield Office Properties from sector perform from sector outperform after Brookfield Property Partners announced a proposal to acquire "any or all" Brookfield Office Properties shares outstanding. Brookfield shares shot up $2.57 to $19.86
Raymond James raised the price target on Genivar Inc. to $30 from $27 following a slew of positive data points for the company and the engineering services industry. Genivar shares tailed off 18 cents to $26.72
On the economic calendar, the September RBC Canadian Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index indicated a sharp jump in business conditions to 54.2 from 52.1 in August, the highest level of confidence over the past 15 months.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange eked up 1.62 points to 942.77
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were higher at the outset, led by health-care, haler by 1.6%, while energy and industrials were each up 0.6%.
The four laggards were weighed by gold, down 2.4%, while metals and mining stocks surrendered 2% and materials dipped 1.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
Congress failed to pass a budget and triggered a government shutdown for the first time in nearly two decades on Tuesday. But Wall Street took Washington's latest breakdown in stride.
The Dow Jones Industrials moved up 13.74 points to begin Tuesday at 15,143.40
The S&P 500 index gained 3.18 points to 1,684.73. The NASDAQ regained 16.31 points to 3,787.79
It may seem like a surprise that stocks were up Tuesday. But the market had sold off in the past few days leading up to the shutdown.
The Dow and S&P 500 declined for seven of the past eight trading days, including the Dow's triple-digit loss on Monday.
Many investors are expecting the shutdown to be resolved quickly, risking little damage to the overall economy, according to some experts.
Investors will also be keeping a close eye on the state of the manufacturing sector Tuesday. The Institute for Supply Management monthly manufacturing report is due out today.
Major automakers will issue their monthly sales reports throughout the day. Ford shares rose nearly 2% after reporting a 6% jump in sales for September.
In other corporate news, drugstore operator Walgreen beat earnings forecasts, sending shares higher.
Shares of Merck also advanced after the drug maker announced that it will cut 8,500 more jobs worldwide.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury lost ground, raising yields to 2.63% from Monday’s 2.61%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices fell 61 cents to $101.72 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices slid $33.50 at $1,293.50 U.S. an ounce.
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