North American markets were higher Monday afternoon amid news that U.S. factory orders enjoyed their first increase since last summer.
The S&P/TSX composite index moved higher 27.70 points to close Monday at 15,367.47
The Canadian dollar regained 0.43 cents to 82.69 cents U.S.
Convenience store operator Couche-Tard was by far the most influential gainer on the index. Its shares climbed $2.07, or 4.6%, to $47.59, recouping a chunk of last week's losses, after the company issued a statement to clarify that the Circle K Corp referenced in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in the United States was not its subsidiary.
Tech funds were also positive, as Sierra Wireless galloped $1.28, or 2.9%, to $45.17, and Descartes Systems Group, ahead 52 cents, or 2.8%, to $18.84.
Among financials, Sun Life was higher 64 cents, or 1.6%, to $39.70, and Industrial Alliance gained 62 cents, or 1.4%, to $44.80.
Metals stocks took the worst punishment, as First Quantum Minerals suffered 69 cents, or 3.5%, to $18.83.
Real-estate stocks took their lumps, as Northern Property REIT lost 42 cents, or 1.6%, to $25.44.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange ducked back 0.31 points to 699.12
The 14 Toronto subgroups were evenly divided between gainers and losers, consumer staples leading the former category, ahead 1.8%, while information technology and financials each improved 0.5%.
The seven laggards were weighed mostly by global base metals, down 0.7%, while real-estate and metals and mining each slid 0.5%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded higher on Monday, following positive momentum from Europe, as investors looked ahead to a week of Federal Reserve speeches and economic data that could shed light on the timing of an interest rate hike.
The Dow Jones Industrials 46.34 points to 18,070.40. The blue -hip briefly gained 100 points in intraday trade and held above 18,000, about 1%away from its closing high.
The S&P 500 index picked up 6.20 points to 2,114.49, a few points shy of its closing high of 2,117.69. Financials led seven sectors higher, with materials the greatest laggard.
The NASDAQ rose 11.54 points to 5,016.93
JPMorgan Chase gained 1.75% to lead the Dow Jones industrial average. The blue chip briefly gained 100 points in intraday trade and held above 18,000, about about one percent away from its closing high.
Analysts also noted market optimism on potential for mergers and acquisitions. Most recently, seed company Monsanto made an offer to buy Switzerland's Syngenta, Bloomberg reported last week, citing sources.
Earnings season continues, with EOG Resources and Tenet Healthcare among firms expected to report after the close.
Reporting before the bell, Comcast, the NBCUniversal parent earned 81 cents U.S. per share for the first quarter, seven cents above estimates, with revenue also above forecasts. Comcast also added $2.5 billion U.S. to its existing stock buyback program.
Sysco, the number-one U.S. food distributor, reported a 2% fall in quarterly profit, hurt by a rise in meat and poultry prices, a strong dollar and higher expenses.
McDonald's is also in focus, with the fast-food giant announcing plans to accelerate re-franchising.
Macerich closed mildly lower after spiking more than 2% on aWall Street Journal report that said the shopping mall operator settled a proxy fight with two activist hedge funds. The activists had criticized the firm for rejecting Simon Property's takeover bid.
In other corporate news, Cisco Systems said Chief Executive John Chambers would step down to become executive chairman and 17-year company veteran Chuck Robbins will become CEO, effective July 26.
Ahead of Friday's important jobs report for the month of April, factory orders for March showed a gain of 2.1%, the biggest increase in eight months and above expectations of a 1.9% increase.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries faltered, raising yields to 2.15% from Friday’s 2.11%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slid 20 cents to $58.95 U.S.
Gold prices recovered $13.40 to $1,187.90 U.S.
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