Canada's main stock index doggedly held onto gains by midday Thursday as investors bet on a faster global economic rebound.
The TSX stopped for lunch up but 1.43 points, adding to Wednesday’s all-time high, climbing to 19,130.50.
The Canadian dollar remained above breakeven 0.19 cents at 79.47 cents U.S.
Canopy Growth said on Thursday it will buy rival Supreme Cannabis for $323.3 million, as the world's biggest cannabis producer bolsters its portfolio to tap surging demand. Canopy shares dropped $1.13, or 3%, to $36.61, while Supreme shares sprang up 14 cents, or 50.9%, to 40 cents.
The largest percentage gainers on the TSX were Osisko Mining, which jumped 12 cents, or 4%, to $3.01, and Endeavour Silver, which rose 59 cents, or 2.2%, to $27.70.
Air Canada fell 83 cents, or 3%, to $26.82, while Vermilion Energy ran out of stream, down 22 cents, or 2.4%, to $8.63.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange remained buoyant 2.9 points to 957.99.
The 12 TSX subgroups were evenly divided between gainers and losers. Information technology soared 1.6%, while materials were stronger 1.1%, and gold brightened 1%.
The half-dozen laggards were weighed most by consumer staples, slid 0.9%, consumer discretionary, off 0.7%, and financials, poorer by 0.6%.
ON WALLSTREET
The S&P 500 rose to another record high on Thursday amid a strong rally in major technology stocks.
The Dow Jones Industrials lost 31.28 points to 33,414.98.
The broader index gained 10.93 points, to 4,090.88, for a new intraday high.
The NASDAQ Composite roared back into positive territory 123.65 points to 13,812.49, as the FAANG shares of Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Google-parent Alphabet were all about 1% higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat.
Investors processed a worse-than-expected reading on the latest weekly jobless claims. A total of 744,000 Americans filed for unemployment benefits for the first time during the week ended April 3, the U.S. Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by
Dow Jones expected first-time claims to total 694,000.
President Joe Biden spoke on Wednesday from Washington about his administration’s $2-trillion infrastructure plan that includes a corporate tax rate hike to 28% and noted that he is willing to negotiate on the proposed tax increase.
The proposed increase to the corporate tax is thought to be a key source of tax revenue for the White House infrastructure plan and is a non-starter for Republicans, who say they are concerned about tax increases as the U.S. economy emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fiscal support is considered a key driver of the past month’s equity records and strong economic data, including a stronger-than-expected March jobs report. The S&P 500, Dow industrials and NASDAQ are all coming off their fourth straight quarter of gains as the economic recovery from COVID-19 accelerates.
The Federal Reserve’s latest meeting minutes, released Wednesday, showed that officials plan to keep the pace of asset purchases the same for some time as the central bank works to support stable prices and maximum employment.
Prices for 10-Year Treasurys gained ground, dropping yields to 1.64% from Wednesday’s 1.67%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices slipped nine cents to $59.68 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices recovered $14.20 to $1,755.80 U.S. an ounce.
