Canada's main equity index was trading positive on Monday afternoon fueled by news that the United States and Mexico reached a deal to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index rose 102.24 points at 16,458.29.
The United States and Mexico reached a deal on Monday to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and talks with Canada were expected to begin immediately in the hopes of reaching a final agreement by Friday, a senior U.S. trade official said.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.99 cents to 77.13 cents
Gold prices pulled back early Monday after scoring their first weekly advance in nearly two months through Friday, when the U.S. dollar retreated for the week after an update on the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate stance. The near-term fortunes for the precious metal and the U.S. currency had reversed again by Monday morning when December gold fell $3.10, or 0.3%, at $1,210.10 an ounce.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange strengthened 4.46 points to 715.83.
Twelve of the subgroups were higher midday, with health-care soaring 3.99%, consumer discretionary issues up by 1.50% and base metal stocks edged up 1.33 percent.
On the downside - utility stocks shed 0.22 percent.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose on Monday after the U.S. and Mexico reached a tentative trade deal. The agreement would replace NAFTA, the trade pact between the U.S., Mexico and Canada. The deal will be called the United States-Mexico Trade agreement, according to Donald Trump.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 263 points, or 1%, to 26,052. The S&P 500 index traded 23 points, or 0.8%, to reach 2,898, after closing at its first record since Jan. 26 on Friday. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 78 points, or 1%, 8,023, hitting a psychological round-number level, and extending its move above a record, also hit on Friday. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq put in fresh intraday all-time highs near the start of Monday trade.
On the economic data front, a measure of the U.S. economy from the Chicago Federal Reserve slowed in July from June’s robust performance, owed in large part to lighter output at the nation’s factories. The Chicago Fed’s index of national economic activity registered at a positive 0.13 last month, down from an upwardly revised positive 0.48 in June.
Tesla Inc. shares slipped 3.2% after Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk late Friday said the electric-car maker would remain a public company. According to The Wall Street Journal, Musk was nagged by lingering doubts and unexpected difficulties for his plan to take Tesla private, a plan he unexpectedly announced over Twitter. The stock is up 3.7% thus far this year, with the going-private announcement a catalyst for recent gains. It is up nearly 16% over the past three months.
Pfizer Inc. was down 2.5% on Monday after the pharmaceutical giant reported positive Phase 3 results for its drug, tafamidis, which reduced the risk of death for patients with a rare and fatal heart disease by around 30%.
Oil futures saw subdued trade early Monday, threatening to give back some of the previous week’s gains ahead of a conference call between members of a committee monitoring the agreement between OPEC and non-OPEC producers on output levels.
West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange were a penny, or less than 0.1%, lower at $68.71 a barrel. October Brent crude LCOV8, +0.29% the global benchmark, was virtually unchanged at $75.83 a barrel.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note moved slightly higher to 2.842 percent, while the 30-year Treasury bond yield rose to 2.987 percent. Bond yields move inversely to prices.
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