The Toronto stock market climbed to a solid gain Monday afternoon after U.S. home sales numbers came in much better than expected for the month of June.
The S&P TSX Composite Index prospered 31.86 points by the closing bell to 11,746.07
The Toronto energy sector added strength, shares in Suncor Energy Inc. gained 32 cents to $33.70.
Gold stocks lost some zip, as Shares in Goldcorp Inc. fell 63 cents to $41.61.
The base metals sector added strength, as the September copper contract gained 3.8 cents to settle at $3.22 U.S. a pound. Shares in Teck Resources Ltd. fell 15 cents to $36.85.
The financial sector jumped following the U.S. home sales report. CIBC stock gained 24 cents to $68.64.
Canadian earnings season will get going in earnest this week and will help give direction to the Toronto stock market. On Tuesday, both CGI Group Inc. and Teck Resources are among the companies scheduled to report.
Shares in LAB Research Inc. added eight cents or 26.7% to 38 cents after the company said it has been selected to supply a wide variety of its contract services, including toxicology, to a Japanese pharmaceutical firm.
Forestry company Tembec Inc. said unionized workers have ratified a new five-year labour contract covering 680 employees at its flagship operation in Temiscaming, Que. Shares in Tembec added 15 cents or 7.8% to $2.08.
Shares in Silvercorp Metals Inc. fell 21 cents or 3.1% to $6.66 after the company estimated its ore production for the current quarter will be down 10% as a consequence of heavy rain last month. Silvercorp said it will spend about $1 million to repair and clean up four mines in China’s Ying mining district within 30 days.
And BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion’s stock lost 47 cents to $57.22 after the United Arab Emirates declared the smartphones a potential threat to national security, saying the devices operate beyond the jurisdiction of national laws and are open to misuse.
The Canadian dollar was 0.24 cents higher to 96.76 cents U.S.
ON BAYSTREET
Of the 14 TSX subgroups, nine were higher. Real-estate stocks topped the list, gaining 1.1%, while financials picked 0.9%, consumer staples were 0.8%.
Of the five losing groups, gold took the biggest hit, at 1.4%, materials were off 1%, and information technology issues slipped 0.7%.
The TSX Venture Exchange tacked on 8.48 points to 1,403.46 while the Nasdaq Canada index gained 1.18 points at 645.08
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks rallied Monday after FedEx's improved forecast and a better-than-expected housing market report tempered worries about the economic outlook.
The Dow Jones industrial average leaped 100.81 points, or 1%, to close at 10,525.43
The S&P 500 index marched ahead 12.35 points to 1,115.01. The Nasdaq composite index was positive by 26.96 points to 2,296.43
Stocks gained in the morning and built on those gains as the session wore on, with investors scooping up a variety of shares. 29 of 30 Dow shares gained ground, led by oil stocks Exxon Mobil and Chevron.
Package shipper FedEx lifted its fiscal first-quarter earnings-per-share guidance to a range of $1.05 to $1.25 U.S., from 58 cents U.S. per share a year ago. Analysts are currently expecting earnings of $1.10 U.S. per share, according to Thomson Reuters. The company also boosted its forecast for fiscal year 2011, citing improved demand particularly for international shipments.
Like UPS, FedEx is seen as a proxy for the economy, due to the nature of its business. Last week, UPS reported better-than-expected quarterly sales and earnings and also boosted its full-year forecast.
FedEx gained over 5% and UPS gained 1.8%.
Roughly 157 major companies, or 31% of the S&P 500, reports results this week. Standouts include Dow companies Boeing, DuPont, Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Merck.
Also, BP reports on Tuesday, providing the first snapshot of the company's performance during the quarter in which the oil spill began. Separately, BP CEO Tony Hayward will step down in October and be offered a job with the company's joint venture in Russia, according to published reports.
Economically speaking, the U.S. Commerce Department said new home sales rose 23.6% to an annual rate of 330,000 in June from the revised May rate of 267,000. Economists were expecting sales to edge up to 310,000 from the 300,000 originally reported for May.
Last month, new home sales dropped steeply due to the expiration of the home buyer tax credit.
While the pace was an improvement from the previous month, it was still sluggish, reflecting the end of the homebuyer tax credit. The slow pace also reflects the slow speed of the economic recovery.
Treasury prices gained, as yields on the 10-year note returned to Friday’s 2.99%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The price of a barrel of oil was fairly flat at $78.96 U.S.
Gold prices slid six dollars at $1,182 U.S. an ounce.
Related Stories
