The TSX was ahead in the mid-afternoon session after giving back some of its earlier gains, as health-care stocks take a turn for the worse and mining shares continued to decline.
The S&P/TSX composite index was stronger by 132.54 points, or nearly 1%, to close Monday at 13,779.44
The Canadian dollar moved lower 0.14 cents at 75.49 cents U.S.
Real-estate issues led the festivities, with Crombie REIT units going for $13.11 apiece, better by 50 cents, or 4%, and Artis REIT up 48 cents, or 3.9%, to $12.72.
Energy stocks were runners-up, with MEG Energy dearer by 63 cents, or 7%, to $9.61, and Lightstream Resources surging three cents, or 4%, to 46 cents.
Among financials – another main engine of the rise – Sun Life Financial jumped $1.81, or 4.4%, to $43.46, and Manulife Financial gained 66 cents, or 3.2%, to $21.08.
Metals and mining stocks took another pasting, as First Quantum Minerals was thumped 65 cents, or 9.4%, to $6.30, and Sherritt International sank five cents, or 5.3%, to 89 cents.
Timmins Gold was the most actively traded stock, gaining seven cents, or 25.9%, to 34 cents, on 8.6 million shares.
On the economic calendar, Statistics Canada reported that wholesale trade –was unchanged in July at $55.4 billion. The agency said higher sales in three sub-sectors, representing 52% of wholesale sales, were offset by lower sales in other sub-sectors.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange moved down 0.15 points to 549.76
Nine of the 14 TSX subgroups were higher on the day, led by real-estate, surging 2%, energy, up 1.7%, and financials, better by 1.6%.
The five laggards were weighed mostly by metals and mining, slumping 5.2%, health-care, down 1.8%, and materials, sinking 1.8%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks closed mixed Monday as investors weighed a decline in biotechs and eyed comments from Federal Reserve speakers.
The Dow Jones industrial average vaulted 125.61 points to 16,510.99, after Friday’s slump of nearly 300 points, with Apple leading advancers and Merck leading decliners.
The S&P 500 moved up 8.94 points to 1,966.97, with financials leading nine sectors higher and health-care the only decliner.
The NASDAQ index improved 13.71 points to 4,840.93, weighed by a plunge in biotechs.
Health-care closed down 1.4% as the only decliner in the S&P 500. Merck, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson were the greatest blue chip decliners.
Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton tweeted that she plans to take on specialty pharma.
The New York Times reported Monday how a firm raised the price of a 62-year-old drug from $13.50 U.S. a tablet to $750 U.S. overnight. The news prompted Clinton to tweet she would outline a plan Tuesday to take on price gouging.
In the close, financials led S&P 500 advancers, while Goldman Sachs topped IBM topped as the greatest boost to the blue-chip index.
Ahead of other housing data due in the week, August existing home sales fell more than expected to an annual rate of 5.31 million, a 4.8% drop.
Greece is also in focus following an election on Sunday in which Alexis Tsipras' left-wing Syriza party returned to power with an unexpected election win, with a mandate to implement a bailout plan.
Prices for 10-year U.S. Treasuries sank, lifting yields to 2.20% from Friday’s 2.13%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices popped $1.66 a barrel to $46.34 U.S.
Gold prices slid $5.40 to $1,132.40 U.S. an ounce.
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