Canadian stocks posted a modest gain on Tuesday as consumer confidence stayed strong, while higher gold and metal prices sent equities in miners group rising.
The S&P TSX Composite Index ended Tuesday up 40.09 points to 12,740.47.
The Canadian dollar was up 0.34 cents at 100.46 U.S. cents
Shares of miners edged up as prices of gold and metal rose. Goldcorp. Inc. rose 3% to $49.81 and Silver Corp Metals Inc. increased 5% to $7.80.
Thompson Creek Metals dropped 15.5% to $7.32 on its earnings report. The mining company was downgraded by Credit Suisse to neutral from outperform.
Industrials went south, with shares of SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. plunging 20.8% to $38.32.
The engineering and construction firm expected its 2011 earnings to be 18%, or $80 million, below its own forecast, including $23 million loss related to Libyan projects and about $35 million of undocumented expenses.
The energy group advanced slightly as oil prices fell. Calfrac Well Services Ltd. jumped 10.5% to $30.71 after the oil and gas company boosted its dividend and posted a nearly fivefold jump in its fourth-quarter earnings. Suncor Energy Inc. edged up 0.2% to $36.24.
Shares of Canadian major banks were mostly up. Bank of Montreal edged up 0.9% to $58.55, after the fourth-largest bank by assets reported a 34% increase in its quarterly earnings. Shares of rival Royal Bank vaulted 1% to $55.57, while Scotiabank shares inched up 0.3% to $53.60.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange was in the green 13.69 points to 1,693.19, while the Nasdaq Canada index inched up 1.52 points to 427.45
Eight of the 14 Toronto subgroups finished negative. Industrials plummeted 2.6%, while health-care stocks and the metals and mining group each gave back 0.3%.
The half-dozen gainers were led by gold and materials, which soared 1.4% each, and consumer staples, which hiked 0.9%.
ON WALLSTREET
In New York, stocks inched higher Tuesday, as investors weighed a small pullback in oil prices and improving consumer confidence against a worse-than-expected drop in durable goods orders.
The Dow Jones Industrials was positive 23.61 points to close at 13,005.10
The S&P 500 added 4.51 points to 1,372.64, while the Nasdaq gained 20.60 points to 2,986.76
Though modest, the gains were enough to put the Dow and S&P 500 at the highest levels since May 2008. The Nasdaq is trading at the highest levels since December 2000.
Shares of Apple rose to an all-time high above $530 U.S. a share Tuesday. The company is expected to announce the iPad 3 at a "special event" in California next week.
Shares of AutoZone rose Tuesday, after the auto parts retailer's fourth-quarter earnings and sales figures rose and topped analyst expectations. Same-store sales at AutoZone improved almost 6% during the last quarter of 2011.
Shares of Apollo Group tumbled after the operator of for-profit University of Phoenix issued a downbeat outlook for 2012, forecasting sluggish growth in new degree enrollment during the second quarter. Shares of fellow for-profit college DeVry also fell.
Cablevision posted earnings that were a penny shy of expectations, but sales that were a bit higher than estimates. Shares of the cable provider were flat.
Priceline.com shares spiked after the online travel company beat earnings and revenue expectations late Monday, thanks to strong growth in international hotel bookings.
Dreamworks Animation is slated to report corporate results after the bell Tuesday. Dreamworks is expected to post earnings of 32 cents U.S. per share.
Investors have been keeping a close watch on the oil market, where crude futures rose almost 9% in seven consecutive days, settling at a nine-month high above $109 U.S. a barrel Friday, amid concerns about increased tensions between Iran and Western powers.
The rise in oil prices has translated into higher gas prices, with the national average rising for 21 straight days.
But crude futures eased for a second straight day Tuesday, lessening worries that higher gas prices could cause the economic recovery to stall if consumers change their spending habits.
Stocks also picked up some momentum after the Conference Board reported a big spike in consumer sentiment in February, with the index now at a one-year high.
However, the optimism was somewhat dampened by a 4% plunge in durable goods orders, the biggest drop in three years.
Investors will continue to watch for developments out of Europe, amid ongoing nervousness about the region's debt crisis.
On Monday, the German Parliament approved the nation's contribution to a second bailout for Greece. Later in the day, S&P downgraded Greece's credit rating to "selective default" after the government took legal steps to impose losses on all holders of Greek government bonds.
Investors are growing optimistic ahead of the European Central Bank's second so-called long-term refinancing operation (LTRO) on Wednesday. The central bank will hold its second auction to allow banks to take three-year loans at low interest rates, bolstering their balance sheets.
In its first auction in December, banks borrowed €489 billion from the ECB. The "flood of money" sparked a rally in stock markets, noted Global Forex Trading's Kathy Lien, and she says this round of stimulus could also be a boon for stocks.
Most analysts are expecting the size of the ECB's refinancing stimulus to be even larger on Wednesday, with a high estimate of €1 trillion.
Economically speaking, durable goods orders tumbled 4% in January, following a 3.2% increase the month before. Analysts were expecting that orders slipped 1.3% during the month.
The Conference Board's consumer confidence index rose in February to the highest level in a year. The index climbed to 70.8 from 61.5 in January. Economists were expecting the index to rise slightly to 63.5.
National home prices fell 4% in the fourth quarter of 2011, putting them back at levels last seen in mid-2002, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller national home price index. That's the fifth consecutive annual loss and the biggest decline since 2008, when markets were in freefall and prices plummeted more than 18%.
Treasury prices for the 10-year note lost ground, powering yields up to 1.93% from Monday’s 1.92%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil for February delivery slipped $1.23 to $106.67 U.S. a barrel.
Gold futures for April delivery rose $10.40 to $1,785.30 U.S. an ounce.
