The Toronto stock market was higher for a sixth straight session with most sectors showing gains at mid-afternoon Tuesday as traders sensed that the TSX may have turned the corner amid improving global economic conditions.
The S&P/TSX composite index strengthened 61.53 points to end Tuesday at 13,248.06
The Canadian dollar advanced 0.16 cents to 97.22 cents U.S.
The TSX gold sector advanced while Barrick Gold jumped 94 cents, or 4.8%, to $20.47 and Goldcorp ran up $1.26, or 4.9%, to $26.99.
The base metals sector gained as the December copper contract on the Nymex rose three cents to $3.34 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources rose $1.17, or 4.1%, to $29.72.
The financials sector was ahead while CIBC improved by $1.06 to $86.41.
The energy component turned lower, as oil prices went further into negative territory after other data showed rising inventories. The U.S. government said Monday, in a report delayed five days due to the government shutdown, that U.S. crude supplies rose by four million barrels in the week ended Oct. 11.
Canadian Natural Resources shed 40 cents to $32.99.
Traders also focused on earnings news this week.
In Canada, traders will take in earnings after the close from Canadian National Railways. Canadian Pacific Railway reports on Wednesday and both are expected to show rising revenues from greater shipments of crude oil. CN was down 15 cents to $109.75, just under its 52-week high of $110, but CP added 50 to $134.74.
The string of gains on the TSX through late October has left the main index up about 6.5% year-to-date, with advances this month led by the gold, base metals and financial sectors.
On the economic stage, Statistics Canada said retail sales edged up 0.2% to $40.2 billion in August. The market call was for a rise of 0.3%.
Higher sales at food and beverage stores were partially offset by weaker sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers and gasoline stations.
Gains were reported in six of 11 subsectors, representing 56% of total retail trade.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange vaulted 11.87 points to 971.77
All but four of the 14 Toronto subgroups were higher on the day, led by gold, powering up 4.6%, while metals and mining tallied 4%, and global base metals grew 3.4%.
The four laggards were weighed mostly by energy, down 0.5%, health-care, off 0.4%, and information technology, sliding 0.3%.
ON WALLSTREET
The September jobs report wasn't great, but stocks rose Tuesday as investors anticipated that lackluster hiring will push the U.S. Federal Reserve to keep its monetary stimulus as is in the months ahead.
The Dow Jones Industrials climbed 75.46 points to close at 15,467.70
The S&P 500 index gained 10.01 points to 1,754.67 The NASDAQ gained 9.52 points to 3,929.57.
Netflix reported strong quarterly earnings and a rosy outlook late Monday. Shares initially surged to an all-time high in early trading, but quickly fell into the red. The stock finished down more than 9%.
Netflix shares have been on a tear all year, up nearly 250% so far.
But Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said he isn't comfortable with the huge run-up. On a post-earnings conference call with analysts, he said Netflix thinks "momentum investors" are "driving the price more than we like normally" -- but that it's out of the company's control.
Delta shares jumped after the airline reported quarterly profit growth.
Coach posted earnings and sales that missed forecasts, led by a drop in domestic sales. The one bright spot was China, where sales jumped 35%.
Lockheed Martin shares rose after the aircraft manufacturer reported a jump in quarterly profit, year over year, and increased its full-year outlook. The good news came despite the government shutdown, which led Lockheed and other defense contractors to furlough some workers.
Whirlpool shares rallied after the home appliance giant reported a third-quarter profit that doubled from a year ago and boosted its outlook for the year.
Apple was in the spotlight after it unveiled theiPad Air, a new lighter and thinner version of its tablet. The iPad Air will hit shelves Nov. 1. The company also announced a new iPad mini. But investors appeared to be unimpressed. Apple shares finished modestly lower following the announcement.
Nokia, which is selling its device business to Microsoft, unveiled its first full-size tablet and a pair of big-screen colorful Lumia smartphones earlier Tuesday.
Shares of Nokia were also up after Dan Loeb said his hedge fund Third Point purchased a stake in Nokia during the third quarter. In a letter to clients, Loeb said he made the purchase after the sale to Microsoft was announced.
The jobs report, which was delayed more than two weeks because of the government shutdown, showed the economy gained just 148,000 jobs last month. But the unemployment rate ticked down to 7.2%, the lowest in nearly five years
Still, the numbers suggest that the U.S. economic recovery remains fragile and that the Fed will likely keep buying $85 billion U.S. in bonds each month for a bit longer.
The Fed has repeatedly said it wants to see more improvement in the job market before it decides to begin scaling back, or tapering, its bond buying program.
Prices for the 10-year U.S. Treasury zoomed higher, lowering yields to 2.51% from Monday’s 2.61%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices fell $1.63 to $97.59 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices climbed $24.30 to $1,340.10 U.S. an ounce.
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