Stocks in Toronto won back valuable ground on Wednesday, with oil and gas stocks bouncing back in line with a rise in the price of Brent crude oil.
The S&P/TSX composite index recovered 133.79 points, to greet noon at 14,775.55, after being stung more than 200 points Tuesday.
The Canadian dollar demurred 0.44 cents to 78.38 cents U.S.
Gold prices were high-flying Wednesday morning, with Asanko Gold performing best, gaining 12 cents, or 7.3%, to $1.76, while NovaGold Resources sprinted out 15 cents, or 4.2%, to $3.73.
Brent prices rose on Wednesday, and shares in major Canadian producers followed, with Suncor Energy up 1.3% at $35.99 and Canadian Natural Resources adding 0.7% to $36.63.
Crescent Point Energy gained 2.4% to $28.36 after reporting a jump in production.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International was having the single biggest positive impact, up 1.5% at $259.33. The company is raising almost $10 billion in debt this week to finance its acquisition of Salix, according to media reports Tuesday.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange nicked lower 1.09 points to 668.41
All but two of the 14 Toronto subgroups were positive by noon hour ET, as gold shone 2.2% brighter, energy was stronger by 1.5%, and industrials acquired 1.1%.
The two laggards were global base metals, down 0.6%, and metals and mining, off 0.4%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded mildly higher on Wednesday in an attempt to recover from Tuesday's selloff, as investors continued to monitor dollar gains and indications on the timing of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike.
The Dow Jones Industrials repaired 33.61 points by noon to 17,696.55, with Intel leading gains and Cisco the greatest laggard.
The S&P 500 reacquired 2.33 points to 2,046.49, with financials leading six sectors higher and consumer staples the greatest laggard.
The NASDAQ index strengthened 2.53 points to 4,862.33.
Skyworks Solutions replaces PetSmart—which will go private through an acquisition by BC Partners—in the S&P 500 after the close on Wednesday.
Lumber Liquidators, which was battered by a "60 Minutes" report on the safety of its flooring products, continues to trade in volatile pattern, and surged 14% on Wednesday. The volatility has been driven by strong opinions—both positive and negative—on the future of the company.
Shake Shack is following up a 5% Tuesday gain with a 1.5% decline, ahead of its quarterly earnings report after today's closing bell.
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts will also post earnings.
Goldman Sachs added SanDisk to its "conviction buy" list, citing an attractive valuation and expanding gross margins, among other factors.
Among the many reports on the Federal Reserve's expected action, analysts eyed a Wednesday article by the Wall Street Journal that said the Fed would drop "patient" from its statement ahead of a rate hike as early as June.
Oil futures extended losses on Wednesday after government data showed U.S. commercial crude inventories rose by 4.5 million barrels last week, well above an industry group report released on Tuesday.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries were unchanged, keeping yields at Tuesday’s 2.13%.
Oil prices fell 46 cents to $47.83 U.S.
Gold prices faded $10.80 to $1,149.30 U.S.
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