Canada's benchmark stock index extended gains on Friday, underpinned by strength in materials stocks, as a rise in commodity prices and hopes of a pause in monetary tightening by the Bank of Canada aided investor sentiment.
The TSX jumped 121.96 points to move into Friday morning at 20,459.17.
The Canadian dollar slid 0.2 cents to 73.37 cents U.S.
Among stocks, Equinor said it would acquire the British oil and gas business of Canada's Suncor Energy for $850 million. Suncor shares here in Canada gained 39 cents to $47.68.
On the economic calendar, Statistics Canada reports he monthly total value of building permits in Canada decreased 4.0% in January to $9.8 billion.
Meanwhile, data showed home prices in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) rose in February from the previous month, but were down sharply on an annual basis, as borrowing costs climbed.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange picked up 4.71 points to 636.72.
All but one of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive Friday morning, co-led by information technology and health-care, each up 1.4%, and consumer discretionary issues, up 1%.
The lone dissenter was in industrials, off 0.03%.
ON WALLSTREET
Stocks rose Friday as rates eased from their recent highs, as Wall Street aimed for a winning weekly performance.
The Dow Jones Industrials raced 117.07 points to begin Friday at 33,120.64,
The S&P 500 gained 33.38 points to 4,014.73.
The NASDAQ Composite popped 134.87 points, or 1.2%, to 11,597.85.
The major averages are on their way to a positive week. On Thursday the S&P 500 closed up 0.28% on the week, on pace to snap a three-week decline, while the NASDAQ had a 0.6% gain. The Dow was also up 0.6% on the week.
Market sentiment got a boost Thursday after Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic said he thinks the central bank can keep its interest rate hikes to 25 basis points rather than the half-point increase favored by some other officials.
Shares in C3.ai surged 17% after C3.ai reported third-quarter results that topped expectations. The enterprise artificial intelligence company posted a narrower-than-expected loss of six cents per share ex-items, compared with estimates for a 22-cent loss, according to Refinitiv. It also reported revenue of $66.7 million, surpassing expectations of $64.2 million.
Shares in ChargePoint Holdings plummeted after the company reported a quarterly revenue miss. The electric vehicle infrastructure company posted revenue of $152.8 million in the fourth quarter, less than the forecasted $164.6 million, according to consensus estimates from FactSet. The company also issued lackluster guidance.
Shares Zscaler slid 11% despite the company beating estimates on the top and bottom lines for the fourth quarter. The company earned an adjusted 37 cents per share, above the 29 cents expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv. However, several analysts pointed to billings guidance as a sign of weakness, with Stifel analyst Adam Borg saying in a note to clients said that the guidance was “muted.”
Prices for the 10-year Treasury jumped, lowering yields to 4.01% from Thursday’s 4.07%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices sank seven cents to $78.09 U.S. a barrel.
Gold prices picked up $8.90 to $1,849.40 U.S. an ounce.
