Equities in Canada’s largest centre hit a record high on Thursday as a rise in oil prices lifted energy stocks, while hopes for loose monetary policies boosted demand for risky equities globally.
The TSX Composite grabbed 92.48 points to greet noon EDT at 20,782.06
The Canadian dollar grew 0.36 cents to 79.59 cents U.S.
The largest percentage gainer on the TSX was BRP which jumped $9.28, or 8.7%, to $115.61, after posting upbeat results, while BlackBerry fell 44 cents, or 3%, the most on the index, to $14.31.
Canadians will face a stark choice on how to tackle a child care crisis when they go to the polls on Sept. 20, with the ruling Liberals vowing to push ahead with a subsidized daycare system and the rival Conservatives offering tax credits to parents.
Canada will donate more than 1.3 million doses of AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine to three African countries through the COVAX vaccine-sharing facility, GAVI said on Thursday.
On the economic beat, Statistics Canada reported the total value of building permits in Canada decreased 3.9% to $9.9 billion in July.
All provinces except British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador posted lower values, with the majority of the national decline reported in Alberta (-23.4%).
Meanwhile, Canada’s merchandise imports rose 4.2% and exports increased 0.6%. As a result, Canada's merchandise trade surplus narrowed from $2.6 billion in June to $778 million in July.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange lopped off 0.69 points, to 906.85
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive midday, with energy rumbling 3.5%, health-care haler by 2.1%., and consumer staples up 0.6%.
The four laggards were weighed most by gold, down 0.9%, materials, off 0.4%, and real-estate, fading 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
The S&P 500 climbed to an all-time high on Thursday after weekly jobless claims came in slightly better than expected.
The Dow Jones Industrials recovered 146.51 points to start trading Thursday at 35,459.04, lifted by Apple and Chevron.
The S&P 500 progressed 13.41 points to 4,537.50, on pace for its 54th record closing high of 2021.
The NASDAQ Composite improved upon Wednesday’s record close by gaining 36.28 points, to 15,345.66.
On Thursday, Chewy dipped 9%, and Five Below tumbled 8%, after reporting quarterly results. Shares of ChargePoint, the maker of charge systems for electric vehicles, jumped 12% after reporting stellar quarterly earnings.
First-time claims for unemployment insurance totaled 340,000 for the week ended August 28, versus a Dow Jones expectation of 345,000.
The number is also the lowest since March 2020 at the height of the COVID crisis.
The data came in a day before the key August jobs report, which investors are watching closely to decipher how fast the Federal Reserve will remove easy monetary policy. Economists predict 720,000 jobs were added in the month, down from 943,000 jobs added in July.
Prices for 10-Year Treasurys were unchanged, keeping yields at Wednesday’s 1.30%.
Oil prices gained $1.65 to $70.24 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices fell five dollars to $1,811.00 U.S. an ounce.
