The Toronto stock market built on early gains Thursday, even amid doubts as to whether Greece will get the bailout money needed to head off bankruptcy and the possibility of downgrades involving some of the world’s biggest banks, including Canada’s Royal Bank.
The S&P TSX Composite Index was ahead 102.95 points to approach noon at 12,464.98
The Canadian dollar picked up 0.28 cents to 100.33 U.S. cents
Moody’s Investors Service said it may lower the ratings of some of the world’s largest banks as well as those of some securities firms because their long-term prospects for profitability and growth are shrinking.
Other banks under review for downgrades include Citigroup, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley.
The announcement comes just days after the ratings agency said that it was cutting the ratings of Italy, Portugal and Spain, partly because of Europe’s weakening economy.
Royal Bank stock was off 10 cents at $53.36.
In the TSX gold sector Barrick Gold Corp. was down $1.19 to $46.35, with its adjusted net earnings growing 15% to $1.17 billion U.S. or $1.17 a share in the fourth quarter on higher gold prices and copper sales. But the results still missed analyst expectations by 10 cents.
Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd. fell $1.89 or 5.54% to $32.23 as it reported a quarterly net loss of $601.4 million, or a loss of $3.53 per share, for the fourth quarter of 2011. Average analyst estimates had been for a profit of 48 cents per diluted share, according to those surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
The base metals sector rose from the ashes as the March copper contract declined five cents to $3.75 U.S. a pound. Teck Resources gave back 33 cents to $38.15.
Among energy companies, Nexen Inc. saw its profit cut by nearly 75% in the latest quarter to $43 million as the big international oil and gas producer booked charges on its books for future oilsands projects and low natural gas prices. But its shares added five cents to $18.99.
In other earnings news, heavy truck and equipment dealer Finning International Inc., the world’s biggest dealer in Caterpillar products, reported that fourth-quarter profit rose 27% to $71 million, while quarterly revenues hit a record $1.8 billion. Its shares ran up 86 cents to $27.61.
On Tuesday, insurance giant Sun Life Financial Inc. reported that it lost $525 million in the latest quarter as the company took some big charges on its books, including the cost of shuttering its individual products business in the U.S.
Canada’s number-three insurer lost 90 cents a share, reversing a net profit of $504 million or 84 cents a year earlier and its shares fell 39 cents to $20.50.
On the economic front, Statistics Canada told us that manufacturing sales improved 0.6% in December to $49.9 billion, the fifth hike in six months.
The nation’s number crunchers also said foreign investment in our securities slowed to $7.4 billion in December, half November’s total. Canadians, meanwhile, acquired $2.8 billion of foreign securities in December, mostly bonds.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange forged ahead 3.60 points to 1,637.18, while the Nasdaq Canada index moved forward 5.22 points to 417.92
All but three of 14 Toronto subgroups were higher by midday. Materials surged 1.6%, while gold moved 1.3% higher and global base metals advanced 1.1%.
The three laggards were health-care and utilities, each losing 0.4%, while consumer staples sagged 0.2%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks moved solidly higher Thursday as positive domestic economic data comforted investors nervous about Greece's ability to secure a second bailout.
The Dow Jones Industrials gained 67.28 points by lunch time to 12,848.20
The S&P 500 garnered 3.14 points to 1,346.37, while the tech-focused Nasdaq gained back 12.01 points to 2,927.84
Both unemployment figures and housing numbers released ahead of the market's open continue to paint a picture of a U.S. economy on the verge of a comeback.
Such economic numbers helped investors look beyond more negative signs from Europe. Moody's put 17 global banks and 114 European financial institutions on review for possible downgrades.
Nine of the global banks put on review by Moody's are headquartered in Europe, the agency said.
Moody's added that Swiss banks Credit Suisse and UBS, as well as New York-based Morgan Stanley, could see their long-term ratings slashed by up to three notches.
U.S.-based Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America were also put on watch.
By afternoon trading, these banks moved up more than 1%, after initially falling by more than 1%.
General Motors posted a record $7.6-billion U.S. net profit for 2011, making it the first year since 2004 that all Big Three automakers -- GM, Ford and Chrysler -- were profitable.
DirectTV beat earnings and sales estimates during the fourth quarter, with particular strength coming from the company's presence in Latin America. DirectTV also announced a $6-billion U.S. stock buyback program.
Nvidia's stock tumbled a day after the company first-quarter revenue forecast fell short of Wall Street's estimate.
Shares of J.M. Smucker slid after the maker of Jif peanut butter and Folgers coffee posted an 11% drop in its fiscal third-quarter profit that was also below expectations.
Shares of Amazon were down after Apple asked the e-commerce company to halt sale of the iPad in China. The move came after Apple lost a trademark dispute over the "iPad" name in Chinese courts.
Meanwhile, uncertainty remains over Greece and its efforts to secure much-needed additional bailout funds. European finance ministers delayed a decision on the bailout Wednesday, as they continue to evaluate a proposed austerity program from Athens.
The Eurogroup meets again Monday and indicated it would likely give its approval for the latest economic reform proposal, which Greece needs in order to secure bailout funds and avoid defaulting on a €14.5-billion bond redemption in March.
On the economic ledger, initial unemployment claims for the week ended February 11 fell to 348,000 -- down 13,000 from the week prior, the U.S. Labor Department said.
Economists were expecting 365,000 claims, according to consensus estimates from Briefing.com.
Housing starts for January rose 1.5% to 699,000, according to the Commerce Department. Building permits rose 0.7% to 676,000 in January. Both totals were higher than expected.
The Producer Price Index for January rose 0.1%, following a decline of 0.3% the month prior. The index was expected to have increased by 0.3% last month.
Treasury prices for the 10-year note lost ground, lifting yields to 1.98% from Wednesday’s 1.93%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery regains 31 cents to $102.23 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for April delivery fell $8.10 to $1,718.20 U.S. an ounce.
