Canada's main stock index experienced healthy gains on Friday, even as concerns about sluggish economic data were offset by strength in the financial and materials sectors.
The S&P/TSX composite index gained 63.51 points to end the day and week at 15,094.25
The Toronto market has gained more than 10% since the start of the year, and investors are looking to see if there are enough catalysts that could push the market higher.
The Canadian dollar strengthened 0.23 cents to 93.79 cents U.S.
Also providing support, Empire Company jumped $3.13, or 4.6%, to $70.82 after a brokerage upgraded the stock.
Financials rose as Royal Bank of Canada advanced 69 cents to $76.03, and Bank of Montreal added 71 cents to $78.58
The materials sector, which includes mining stocks, was up
as Teck Resources climbed 17 cents to $23.87, though Barrick Gold dropped a penny to $19.22.
On the economic slate, Statistics Canada reported this morning that its Raw Materials Price Index declined 0.4%, mostly as a result of lower prices for animals and animal products.
Its Industrial Product Price Index was down 0.5% in May, mainly because of lower prices for energy and petroleum products.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange picked up 9.72 points to 1,022.86
All but three of the 14 Toronto subgroups were higher, led by metals and mining, consumer staples and health-care, each up 0.8%
The three naysayers were gold, up 0.2%, while materials and global base metals each slipped 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
All three U.S. stock indices edged higher on Friday following a downbeat second-quarter forecast from DuPont, though consumer sentiment data helped support the market.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 5.71 points to close the week at 16,851.84
The S&P 500 picked up 3.74 points to 1,960.96, and the NASDAQ composite gained 18.88 points to 4,397.93.
The Dow and S&P 500 were on track for declines for the week, though Wall Street's 2014 rally was expected to continue into the second half of the year.
A Reuters poll on Thursday showed the S&P 500 is expected to hit 2,000 before the end of 2014.
DuPont shares lost 4% to $65.00 and were among the biggest negative influences for the Dow and S&P 500, a day after it cut its operating profit forecast for the quarter and full year, mainly due to a worse-than-expected performance at its agriculture and performance chemicals units.
It was among the latest companies to warn on the quarter, with the ratio of negative to positive outlooks at 4.2 to 1, higher than the long-term average of 2.6 to 1, Thomson Reuters data showed.
Among gainers, Nike rose 1.3% to $77.84 U.S. a day after its fourth-quarter earnings beat expectations.
U.S. consumer sentiment rose more than expected, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final June reading, though that follows weak reads on consumer spending and first-quarter economic activity earlier this week.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries were lower, raising yields to 2.53% from Thursday’s 2.52%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices shed 39 cents to $105.77 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices took on $1.70 to $1,318.70 U.S. an ounce.
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