Canadian stocks enjoyed a second straight daily gain on Thursday following the release of some encouraging economic data. Gains have been limited, however, amid worries over credit situations in Greece and Spain.
The S&P/TSX Composite climbed 75.35 points at the close at 11,454.57.
Energy stocks recovered some of the recent weakness, as Suncor added 3.3% to $36.80, Canadian Natural Resources was up 2.2% to $68.58 and Canadian Oil Sands gained 1.1% to $28.80.
Mining stocks gained as well, as HudBay surged 4.4% to $13.88 and Teck Resources gained 2.2% to $37.25
In corporate news, Gildan Activewear surged 10.9% to $23.34 after the company reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $42.39 million U.S. or $0.35 U.S. per share, compared to $21.83 million U.S. or $0.18 U.S. per share last year.
ADF Group plunged 6% to $2.51 after the company posted third-quarter net earnings of $1.4 million or $0.04 per share, compared to $6.5 million or $0.18 per share for the same quarter last year.
West 49 was unchanged at 51 cents after the company reported third-quarter net income and comprehensive income of $2.9 million or $0.04 per share, compared to $2.07 million or $0.03 per share last year.
Wi-LAN was down 2.3% to $2.59 despite reporting fourth-quarter net earnings of $16.5 million or $0.16 per share, compared to $277,000 or breakeven per share in the last-year quarter.
Lululemon Athletica reported net income for the third quarter of $14.1 million U.S. or $0.20 per share, compared to $8.8 million or $0.13 per share in the year-ago quarter. However, the stock was down 4% to $28.06.
Research in Motion added 2.2% to $69.30 after being reiterated at "outperform" by RBC Capital Markets. The target price was cut to $120 U.S. from $150 U.S.
In economic news, Statistics Canada reported an unexpected trade surplus of $428 million in October, compared to a deficit of $850 million in the prior month. Exports were up 3.4%.
The Canadian dollar was ahead 0.37 cents to 95.21 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
All but three of the 14 TSX subgroups were positive at the end of the day. Energy stocks gained 1.8%, followed by metals and mining stocks, up 1.3% and consumer discretionaries, ahead 1%.
The three losing groups were telecoms and gold, down 0.6% each, while materials settled back 0.4%.
The TSX Venture Exchange recovered 6.08 points to 1,416.16, while the Nasdaq Canada index was up 13.11 points to 710.98.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, equities rallied Thursday afternoon as investors sorted through a bevy of reports on jobs, housing, net worth and the deficit -- and opted to scoop up a variety of shares.
The Dow Jones Industrials added 68.78 points to 10,405.83, while the S&P 500 gained 6.40 points to 1,102.05, while the Nasdaq picked up 7.13 points to 2,190.86.
Gains were broad-based, with 24 of 30 Dow stocks rising, led by commodities and consumer names.
Gainers included Alcoa, Chevron, Walt Disney, Johnson & Johnson and Wal-Mart Stores.
Stocks rose more sharply in the first minutes of trade, with the Dow adding as much as 107 points on the weak dollar. But the dollar turned positive versus the euro and yen, causing stocks to trim some gains.
The weak dollar has helped stocks rally over the past nine months, with the S&P 500 now up 62% from 12-year lows hit on March 9. The weaker dollar has given a boost to dollar-traded commodity shares and the stocks of companies that do a lot of business overseas and therefore benefit from a weaker greenback.
But in the last few weeks, the dollar has zigzagged and so have stocks. Stocks have also been volatile due to the lighter trading volume this month, with many investors opting to coast through year end rather than shake up their portfolios at the end of the tumultuous year.
Ciena posted a wider-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter loss as a result of rising costs. The networking gear maker also forecast better-than-expected revenue in the current quarter. But investors focused on the loss, sending shares lower in active Nasdaq trading.
AOL began trading Thursday after completing its spinoff from CNNMoney.com parent Time Warner Wednesday, ending what is considered to be one of the worst mergers in corporate history. Shares fell 2%.
Warehouse club operator Costco posted fiscal first-quarter earnings of 60 cents U.S. per share versus 65 cents U.S. a year ago, in line with analysts' estimates.
On the economic front, investors were focusing on reports on initial claims for unemployment benefits and the U.S. trade balance before the opening bell -- though they showed little reaction to the weaker-than-expected job report.
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for state jobless benefits rose to 474,000 in the week ended Dec. 5. That's up 17,000 from the prior week.
Jobless claims were expected to have declined by 2,000 last week to 455,000, according to analysts surveyed by Briefing.com.
However, continuing claims, the number of Americans receiving benefits for a week or more, declined more than expected.
Elsewhere, foreclosure filings fell 8% in November from October, according to RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed properties. That means November is the fourth month in a row in which foreclosure filings have dropped.
But foreclosures are still up 20% from a year ago.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner spoke to the Congressional Oversight Panel about the government's bailout of the financial system. On Wednesday, Geithner said the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) would be extended through Oct. 2010. It had been set to expire at the end of this month.
Also Wednesday, the Congressional Oversight Panel said that while TARP helped stabilize the banking system, it failed to boost spending or stop foreclosures.
In other news, the Commerce Department reported that the nation's trade gap narrowed in October to $32.9 billion U.S. from a revised $35.7 billion U.S. in September, thanks to a jump in exports. Economists thought it would widen to $36.8 billion U.S., on average.
For the second straight quarter, Americans' net worth rose, according to a Federal Reserve report released Thursday afternoon.
Net worth, the value of assets like homes minus debts like mortgages, grew $2.7 trillion U.S. or 2% in the third quarter to an estimated $53.4 trillion U.S. Gains in stock investments and home values led to the rise.
However, net worth remains far below the peak in the second quarter of 2007, before the start of the recession. At that point, net worth peaked at $65.3 trillion U.S.
Treasury prices went down, raising yields to 3.49% from Wednesday’s 3.42%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The price of a barrel of oil skidded 13 cents to 70.48 cents U.S.
Gold prices gained six dollars to $1,126 an ounce U.S.
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